Scope of Practice for Esthetics Licensure in Idaho
(By: Emily Robinson)
Each state regulatory board is responsible for regulating its licensees by determining if the device’s intended use is within the licensee’s scope of practice. A review of state law and the governing rules and regulations provide guidelines for the state board to determine whether it decides to allow licensees to use a particular device.
My brain starts to numb when I read anything legal provided by state boards. Asking state board staff for clarification is fruitless as anyone you contact will explain that they are not lawyers and therefore can’t interpret what is written, only relay the information. Here is what I determined after some digging:
Title 54, Chapter 58 Barber and Cosmetology Services Act covers the scope of practice for Idaho and can be found at the following here.
The information reads as follows:
“Esthetician” means a person licensed to practice esthetics as defined in this section.
(14) “Esthetics” means noninvasive care of the skin by application of cosmetic preparations, antiseptics, tonics, lotions, creams, and essential oils to cleanse, massage, exfoliate, hydrate and stimulate; makeup application; pore extraction; use of chemical exfoliants approved for professional esthetic use; particle exfoliation; use of any class I medical device, as classified by the United States food and drug administration, designed for care of the skin, except that a class II medical device designed for care of the skin may be used as directed and supervised by an authorized and licensed health care practitioner; temporary removal of superfluous hair by lotions, creams, waxing, tweezing, depilatories or other means; and tinting or perming the eyebrows and eyelashes.
What does that mean? Licensed estheticians in the state of Idaho may apply products, chemicals & particle exfoliants approved for esthetic use to the skin and temporarily remove hair from the face and body through waxing, tweezing, or depilatories. They can tint and perm brows and lashes.
What about medical devices? Technically, all devices used by estheticians are considered medical devices. Medical devices are broken down into classes by the level of risk involved in use. Estheticians in Idaho may use class I or class II medical devices under a doctor’s supervision.
Class I is a medical device with low to moderate risk requiring general controls. Estheticians may use these devices without medical supervision
- Microdermabrasion
- Hydrodermabrasion
- Microcurrent
- LED
- Microchanneling
- Superficial ultrasound (3mhz or more)
- Galvanic
- Vacuum
- High Frequency
Class II: A medical device with a moderate to high risk that requires special controls. Estheticians may use these devices when working under medical supervision.
- Microneedling (Defined by the FDA as of 2018)
- Lasers for hair removal or skin resurfacing
- Radiofrequency
- Non-superficial Ultrasound (2mhz or less)
- Cool sculpting
Class III: A medical device with a high risk that requires premarket approval. Estheticians any not use these devices with or without medical supervision.
Where do injectables fit into this? The most current update to the regulations I could find occurred in 2020. As of 2020, an esthetician is no longer legally allowed to perform injectables under a doctor’s supervision. Read more here.
The information reads as follows:
39-9703. INJECTION OF A COSMETIC TREATMENT INTO A PERSON’S HEAD AND NECK.
(1) The practice of injecting a cosmetic treatment into a person’s head and neck shall be prohibited unless a person is:
(a) A physician or physician assistant licensed pursuant to the medical practice act, chapter 18, title 54, Idaho Code;
(b) A registered nurse or an advanced practice registered nurse licensed pursuant to chapter 14, title 54, Idaho Code;
(c) A dentist licensed pursuant to chapter 9, title 54, Idaho Code; or
(d) A pharmacist licensed pursuant to chapter 17, title 54, Idaho Code
(2) A person who is authorized by subsection
(1) of this section to inject cosmetic treatments into a person’s head and neck shall not delegate such injection to a person who is prohibited from such practice
(3) A person who violates any provision of this section is guilty of amisdemeanor
(4) As used in this section, “cosmetic treatment” includes:
(a) Neuromodulators derived from clostridium botulinum or that are biosimilar to or the bioequivalent of such neuromodulators; and
(b) Dermal or soft tissue fillers
Licensed estheticians should stay abreast of the latest changes in the industry. Check the Board website regularly to stay up to date.