Massage Therapy Journal Fall 2024

12 • Massage Therapy Journal

Advocacy Advancing the Massage Therapy Profession

AMTA Advocates for Crucial Massage Therapy Legislation at the State Level A s the 2024 legislative season winds down, AMTA has been advocating in states across the country to champion massage therapy

• AMTA worked with Minnesota on Senate File 967 and House File 973 , which are companion bills, to establish

licensure and advance legislation on massage therapy for pain. Read on to learn more about AMTA’s top legislative priorities at the state level on behalf of the massage therapy profession.* AMTA Continues to Champion Massage Licensure in States AMTA is committed to helping champion licensure for massage therapists in all 50 states across the country. Legal recognition of massage therapy and clearly defined requirements will help advance the profession, as well as protect the health and safety of massage consumers. AMTA has been focused on helping Kansas and Minnesota, two remaining unlicensed states, pass legislation on massage therapy licensure: • AMTA continues to advocate for the passage of Kansas

state licensure for massage therapists as well as Asian bodywork therapists. These bills were held up again due to other priorities in the legislature and will need to be reintroduced this fall for the 2025 session. AMTA will continue to support this effort by building our stakeholder support and communicating the value of licensure for massage therapists in Minnesota. AMTA Helps Advance Massage for Pain Legislation in States AMTA monitored 30 bills related to non pharmacological approaches for managing chronic pain at the state level this legislative session. Many of these bills specifically include massage therapy and other complementary approaches to care. The following crucial bills could help remove barriers to non-opioid pain management, require insurers to cover non-pharmacological therapies such as massage, and study alternative treatments for pain:

Senate Bill 305 , the Massage Therapists Licensure Act. This

bill, which would provide for regulation and licensing of massage therapists, remains in play and is on track to be heard in a special session this summer.

• Massachusetts HB 1962 is still active and would require that the Department of Health develop and publish

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