Does a long-term care / assisted living / group home in Ohio need a medical director?

Yes. The rule calls the role Medical Director. A physician licensed under Ohio Rev. Code Ch. 4731.

🏥 Long-Term Care / Assisted Living / Group Home · Ohio

Ohio: what a medical director of a long-term care / assisted living / group home must do

Whether Ohio requires a physician medical director for a long-term care / assisted living / group home, the qualifications you need, and the duties the rule assigns.

Medical directorMedical director required

Title in the ruleMedical Director

Research date2026-08-14

Qualifications

A physician licensed under Ohio Rev. Code Ch. 4731.

Duties the rule assigns

Develop resident care policies
Make medical care available to residents not under the care of their own physician
Make emergency medical care available when a resident's own physician is not readily available
Meet periodically with nursing and other professional staff on clinical/administrative issues
Observe residents and facilities at least quarterly
Monitor the clinical practices of attending physicians
Oversee staff health surveillance

Notes

CONFIRMED for nursing homes specifically (Ohio Admin. Code 3701-17-13) — this largely tracks the federal SNF medical-director requirement (42 CFR 483.75(i)) that already applies nationwide, not a requirement unique to Ohio. Research could NOT confirm an equivalent medical-director mandate for the lower-acuity residential care facility/assisted-living tier (OAC Ch. 3701-16, which governs personnel requirements separately) — treat that tier as an open question pending direct confirmation, not a settled 'no requirement.'

Sources (1)

Ohio Admin. Code 3701-17-13 (Nursing homes — medical care/medical director)

Every agreement Ohio names · Long-Term Care / Assisted Living / Group Home in other states