Medical Director Contract for a Med Spa
Seven clauses decide whether the arrangement works. Scope in your state's language, hours per month, chart review quantities, availability and escalation, pay, exit terms, and the fate of records and protocols. Vague scope and no exit terms cause most disputes.
Most problems with a medical director arrangement were visible in the contract before anyone signed it. They usually show up in two clauses.
Scope that describes the role in general terms, and an end date that nobody agreed because nobody wrote it down.
Which seven clauses matter?
- Scope. The specific services supervised, in your state's language rather than a general phrase.
- Hours. What the monthly fee actually buys, and what happens when you exceed it.
- Chart review. How many charts, how often, and where the review is recorded.
- Availability. Response expectations, including weekends, plus the escalation route for your front desk.
- Pay. The amount, the structure, and what triggers a change.
- Termination. Notice period on both sides, and whether it is for cause.
- Exit. What happens to patient records, standing orders and protocols when it ends.
Which terms cause trouble later?
| Term | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| "As needed" | Too vague to enforce. State hours and response times instead. |
| "Reasonable" notice | Define it in days on each side, including for cause. |
| Protocol ownership unstated | Say who owns the standing orders and whether a successor may adopt them. |
| Records silent | Patient records are the practice's, but say so and set the handover route. |
| Non-compete unchecked | A clause preventing the physician from working with another local med spa may not be enforceable in your state. |
| Payment tied to volume | Structures paying a percentage of revenue attract scrutiny. Understand yours before signing. |
Does the corporate practice rule affect the agreement?
If your state restricts who may own a medical practice, the agreement's structure is not just about tax. A supervisory arrangement that looks like a disguised ownership interest can create a problem a straightforward retainer would not.
That is a specific question for a healthcare attorney in your state, and it is worth the fee. The same agreement terms that are fine in one state are a problem in another.
What should you check before signing?
- Verify the licence and read the disciplinary record at the state board.
- Ask for the malpractice certificate and confirm it covers the supervisory role.
- Confirm their capacity, meaning how many other sites they already cover.
- Read the termination clause and work out what the transition looks like.
- Ask what happens to your standing orders if they leave.
- Have a healthcare attorney in your state read it before signature.
How does it run alongside a platform?
If you also run a prescription program through a platform, make the split explicit in both directions. Your medical director supervises your practice and its staff. The platform supplies the clinicians treating the program's patients.
Two clauses are worth adding for that reason. One confirms your director is not being asked to review platform patients. The other confirms the platform's clinicians are not described as supervising your staff, because they do not.
What should the term and termination clauses say?
Length and renewal
An initial term with automatic renewal, or a rolling month-to-month. Rolling terms suit a new relationship. A one or two year term suits one you have tested.
Notice on both sides
Notice should be symmetric where the work is not. A physician who may leave on a week's notice while holding you to a year is an imbalance worth correcting before signing.
What happens on short notice
Ask whether they will stay available through a handover. An abrupt departure can suspend your treatment offering until a replacement signs.
Termination for cause
Name what counts as cause, including loss of licence and failure to perform chart reviews. Without a definition, cause becomes an argument.
How is liability handled?
Malpractice cover
Ask who insures the supervisory role, and ask for the certificate. Some physicians carry it and some expect the practice to.
Indemnity
A mutual clause is normal. One running only from you to the physician means you are carrying their exposure alongside your own.
Who answers a complaint
The agreement should say who responds if a patient complains about a treatment the physician supervised. Silence here becomes a dispute at the worst possible moment.
What happens when the agreement ends?
| Item | What the agreement should say |
|---|---|
| Protocols | Whether the signed versions remain valid, and for how long. |
| Standing orders | What stops, and what a successor has to re-sign. |
| Patient records | That they are yours, and how you get copies. |
| Chart review records | That you keep them, since they are your evidence of compliance. |
| Tail cover | Whether cover continues for treatments performed during the term. |
The last row is the one most practices miss. Claims can arrive long after a treatment, and a departing physician who takes their cover with them leaves the practice exposed for work that was properly supervised at the time.
More on medical directors
- Medical director for a med spaWhat a medical director does in a med spa, when one is required, what it costs, and how it differs from the clinicians who write prescriptions.
- Does a med spa need a medical director?How to work out whether your med spa needs a medical director, which state rules decide it, and why the answer changes when you add prescriptions.
- How to find a medical director for a med spaWhere to look for a medical director, what to check before signing, and the terms that need to be in the agreement for a med spa.
- What a medical director costsPublished rates for a med spa medical director, why the figures disagree by an order of magnitude, and what actually determines what you pay.
- Medical director requirementsWhat Florida and Texas require of a med spa medical director, and how to establish the rule that applies to your state and treatment menu.
- Medical director responsibilitiesWhat a med spa medical director is responsible for, what belongs in the job description, and which duties owners most often leave undefined.
What should a medical director contract include?
Scope in your state's language, monthly hours, chart review quantities, availability and escalation, pay structure, termination notice on both sides, and what happens to records and protocols at the end.
Can a medical director have a non-compete?
It is commonly attempted and enforceability varies by state. Have a local healthcare attorney review it, since an unenforceable clause gives you no protection either way.
Can I pay a medical director a percentage of revenue?
Some arrangements do and others attract scrutiny as a disguised ownership interest. Check your state's corporate practice of medicine position before agreeing to one.
What happens to my standing orders when the medical director leaves?
They stop being valid without a supervising physician. Say in the agreement who owns the protocols and how quickly a successor can adopt them.
Do I need an attorney to review a medical director agreement?
It is worth it. These agreements sit across medical regulation, employment and corporate structure, and the right terms differ by state.