Doctors given new access to the proprietary chemical recipes that oil and gas drillers use to crack into Ohio shale would be prohibited from sharing the information with the public under an energy proposal moving through the Ohio House.
Environmentalists liken the restriction to a gag order on medical professionals. Drilling companies say it's necessary to protect trade secrets.
Similar limits on medical professionals have become law in Pennsylvania and other drilling states. The rules are separate from new chemical disclosure guidelines in the bill.
An Ohio legislative committee was debating the provision Tuesday ahead of a possible vote.
It is part of a wide-ranging energy bill laying out other rules for Ohio's growing oil and gas industry. The legislation also adjusts Ohio's alternative energy standard to include waste heat.