This week: California's corporate-practice law is now being enforced, FDA's peptide review heads toward rulemaking, two new filler approvals arrive, and the gap between Botox and Juvéderm demand keeps widening.
The Aesthetic Velocity Insider is your weekly briefing on what’s new in the medical aesthetics industry. Browse past issues →
In This Issue
California's SB 351 enforcement, Texas IV and delegation rules, the peptide timeline, New York, Indiana and Vermont's new MSO law.
Julianne Hough becomes the celebrity face of DAXXIFY.
Why transparency content is outperforming polished feeds.
Two new BELOTERO fillers, Allergan's SKIN360 consultation framework and Dermalogica's PRO Pen.
The Aesthetic Show 2027 abstract deadline and AmSpa's 2027 speaker decisions.
Botox vs. Juvéderm in AbbVie's Q2, Galderma's record half and RealSelf's Q1 trends.
What This Means for Your Practice →
Four moves: SB 351 paperwork, credentialing files, filler fatigue and peptide marketing.
Compliance & Regulatory
Ownership Rules, IV Therapy and Peptides Move Center Stage
California's SB 351 is now the standard regulators enforce
SB 351 took effect January 1, 2026. It bars private equity groups, hedge funds and the management companies they control from interfering with clinical judgment. Only physicians can make decisions such as hiring clinical staff, setting billing and coding, and owning medical records, and any contract term that gives investors that control is void. California health law firm DJ Holt Law says med spas should replace generic standing orders with patient-specific orders based on an individual exam, and run clinical care through a physician-owned professional corporation. A companion law, AB 1415, also took effect January 1 and requires private equity, hedge funds and MSOs to give the Office of Health Care Affordability 90 days' notice before covered transactions, which affects the timeline of any sale or acquisition.
Sources: Foley & Lardner · DJ Holt Law · AmSpa, AB 1415
Texas: Rule 169.28 and Jenifer's Law are both in force
- January 9, 2025: Texas Medical Board Rule 169.28 took effect. It treats non-surgical cosmetic procedures as the practice of medicine, requires written delegation, requires the delegating physician's name and license number to be posted, and requires staff to wear name tags showing their credentials.
- June 20, 2025: HB 3749 (Jenifer's Law) was signed in a narrowed form focused on elective IV therapy.
- September 1, 2025: HB 3749 took effect. IV treatments must be administered by an RN or higher-level provider.
Source: Med Spa Standards
Peptides: off the "do not compound" list, but not legal to compound yet
- April 15, 2026: FDA announced that 12 peptides, including BPC-157, TB-500, epitalon, KPV, MOTS-c and semax, would be removed from Category 2 of its 503A bulk substances list. Removal alone does not make them legal to compound.
- July 23–24, 2026: FDA's Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee voted to recommend adding six of the seven peptides it reviewed to the 503A bulks list. Emideltide (DSIP) was not recommended.
Sources: FDA Law Blog · AmSpa · Sheppard Mullin
New York's med spa task force: 223 inspections, 87 citations
In January 2026, New York's Department of State led a multi-agency enforcement effort with the Department of Health, the State Education Department and New York City investigators. The first round inspected 223 businesses and cited 87, with findings including unlicensed people performing medical procedures, expired and suspected counterfeit products, and controlled substances such as fentanyl and propofol on site. Inspectors check each staff member's license against a procedure licensure chart covering injectables, microneedling, lasers, IV therapy and weight-loss medications. Two bills are moving: a laser hair removal technician license, and an esthetician scope expansion that would allow microneedling up to 0.3 mm.
Sources: New York Department of State · Med Spa Standards
Indiana: registration opens January 1, 2027
Indiana's SB 282 was signed March 5, 2026, and most provisions took effect July 1, 2026. It requires med spas to register with the Medical Licensing Board, designate a responsible practitioner and report serious adverse events, and it bars providing services away from the registered location. On September 30, the board announced that registration opens January 1, 2027 through the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency's online portal. Operating without registration can bring fines of up to $5,000.
Sources: Indiana Medical Spa Regulations · AmSpa
Vermont restricts MSOs with H.583
Vermont's governor signed H.583 on June 15, 2026, adopting a corporate practice of medicine rule in a state that didn't have one. Vermont-licensed physicians must hold a majority of a medical practice's voting shares and board seats, the same people can't hold positions in both a practice and its contracted MSO, and owners must be meaningfully involved in delivering care. MSOs can't control clinical decisions, hiring, compensation, staffing, billing policies or pricing, and ownership must be reported every two years. Vermont joins Oregon and California in tightening the MSO model.
Sources: AmSpa · Ropes & Gray
Culture & Celebrity
Daxxify Goes Mainstream With a Celebrity Face
Revance names Julianne Hough as DAXXIFY's celebrity brand partner
Announced June 23, 2026, the campaign has Hough explaining the longer-lasting neuromodulator on her own social channels and DAXXIFY's, with paid media planned through 2027. Revance calls DAXXIFY the fastest-growing neurotoxin in the U.S. For practices still positioning it only as a premium alternative to Botox, it's a sign the brand is now investing in mainstream consumer reach.
Sources: Revance · Fierce Pharma
Product & Device Launches
New Fillers, a Consultation Framework and a Device Debut
Merz brings its full BELOTERO lineup to the U.S.
On September 14, 2026, FDA approved BELOTERO VOLUME (+) to restore midface volume and contour in adults 22 and older, and BELOTERO INTENSE (+) to add lip fullness in adults over 21. They join BELOTERO BALANCE (+). Merz expects VOLUME (+) to be available October 14, 2026 and INTENSE (+) December 1, 2026. The line is built on Merz's Cohesive Polydensified Matrix gel, which the company says is designed for tissue integration and natural movement.
Sources: Business Wire · AmSpa
Allergan launches AA Signature with SKIN360
On September 22, 2026, Allergan Aesthetics introduced AA Signature in the U.S., a set of multimodal consultation approaches. The first, SKIN360, combines SKINVIVE by JUVÉDERM, SkinMedica HA5 Hydra Collagen Hydrator and BOTOX Cosmetic for patients who want smoother, more hydrated skin, with protocols for lift, structure and definition planned through 2027. Allergan cites its own data that practices using a comprehensive, multimodal approach see 68% higher patient retention than those treating a single concern, and that eight in 10 patients move forward after a comprehensive assessment. It's a ready-made structure worth reviewing if your consults still focus on one treatment at a time.
Source: AbbVie
Dermalogica enters medical devices with the PRO Pen
Dermalogica's PRO Pen Microneedling System, FDA-cleared as a Class II device for facial acne scars, is rolling out to U.S. practices in 2026. It's the skincare brand's first medical device, and a natural add-on to evaluate if you already carry Dermalogica's professional line.
Source: AmSpa
Conferences & Speaking
Speaking Deadlines for 2027
The Aesthetic Show 2027 abstracts are due October 15
The Aesthetic Show runs July 8–11, 2027 at the Wynn Las Vegas, and abstract submissions are due October 15, 2026. Submissions should be original educational presentations, with a limit of five abstracts per submitter.
Source: The Aesthetic Show
AmSpa Medical Spa Show 2027 speaker decisions are rolling out
Sessions run April 16–18, 2027. The call for presentations closed June 30, 2026, and acceptance notices go out between July and December 2026. AmSpa favors product-neutral, CME-approved content, and vendors must exhibit in the expo hall to be considered for a speaking slot.
Source: AmSpa
Market & Publications
Toxin Is Growing While Filler Softens
AbbVie's Q2 shows the Botox and Juvéderm split
In second-quarter 2026 results reported July 31, Botox Cosmetic revenue rose 5.2% (reported) to $728 million, while Juvéderm fell 6.0% to $245 million. Total aesthetics revenue of $1.282 billion was essentially flat, up 0.3% reported, so toxin growth is offsetting filler weakness rather than the category growing overall. AbbVie reports third-quarter results on October 30, 2026.
Source: AbbVie
Galderma posts a record first half
Galderma's first-half 2026 net sales reached a record $3.134 billion, up 24.6% at constant currency. Injectable Aesthetics grew 12.1% to $1.437 billion, with neuromodulators up 13.4% to $826 million and fillers and biostimulators up 10.5% to $611 million. Therapeutic Dermatology grew 67.9% to $848 million, including $433 million from Nemluvio. Galderma raised its full-year guidance to 19–21% growth. For practices carrying Dysport, Restylane or Sculptra, Galderma's filler growth stands out against Juvéderm's decline.
Source: Galderma
RealSelf: patients are favoring longer-lasting, natural results
RealSelf's Q1 2026 Real Talk Report shows Botox remained the top noninvasive treatment by interest but dipped 12%, while Sculptra climbed 25%. Among energy-based treatments, T-Shape 2 rose 171% from the previous quarter and UltraClear Laser rose 85%. On the surgical side, breast implant revision interest jumped 89% and breast augmentation rose 45%.
Takeaways
What This Means for Your Practice
California: tighten your SB 351 paperwork now
Replace standing orders with patient-specific orders, and make sure your MSO agreement keeps clinical decisions with physicians on paper, not just in practice. If you start now, it's a documentation review, not a rebuild.
Keep delegation and credentialing files ready
New York, Texas and Indiana are part of the same national pattern: states are spelling out who can inject, document and administer IV therapy. Whatever state you're in, confirm your delegation agreements, staff credentials and medical director documentation are current and easy to produce.
Address filler fatigue head on
Toxin is growing while Juvéderm softens. Use consult scripts and social content to reassure patients that modern filler technique avoids the overfilled look, rather than staying quiet about it.
Hold off on marketing peptides
The July advisory vote was encouraging, but BPC-157, TB-500 and the other peptides still can't be compounded under 503A. Wait for FDA's final rule before building marketing around them.
This brief is for general information and isn't legal or regulatory advice. Laws and agency guidance change, so talk to a healthcare attorney about your specific situation.
Social Media & Trends
Transparency Content Is Outperforming Polish
Show the mapping, the product choice and the reasoning
The Aesthetic Vault, a content membership for aesthetic providers, says reels that show an injector's actual mapping, product selection and decision-making are outperforming static before-and-afters and heavily curated feeds. In its words, this kind of content "turns you from 'a provider' into 'my provider.'" Before-and-afters with a story behind them, such as a patient who felt tired every morning and wanted to look like herself again, get saved and shared more than the photo pair alone. Generic trend-chasing built around a popular sound is losing ground to intentional, education-first content.
Source: The Aesthetic Vault
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