Midsummer News Rubdown

The massage therapy landscape is shifting with regulatory changes and developments across states, including the Interstate Massage Compact passing in five states and ongoing advancements in state licensing requirements. Recent months have seen significant changes including Vermont's increased registration fees, Idaho's elimination of continuing education requirements, and new regulations addressing human trafficking in multiple states.

• Interstate Massage Compact has passed in five states, with two more needed for implementation
• Vermont raised application and renewal fees for massage registration
• Idaho eliminated continuing education requirements while extending renewal cycles to two years
• Oregon increased massage therapy fees by 35% for budget rebalancing
• Utah now requires massage establishment registration starting October 1st
• Arkansas added massage businesses to those required to display human trafficking hotline information
• AMTA highlighted new research supporting massage for anxiety and depression
• Upcoming events include AMTA National Convention and Black Massage Therapist Conference
• International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork June edition features various research studies

ABMP Scholarship Sweepstakes

Healwell Substack: More Than Hands

Chapters

• 1:06 Healwell News
• 1:54 State and National News
• 7:36 Association News
• 9:24 Live Events

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:35

The American Massage Therapy Association is proud to sponsor the Rub Podcast. With AMTA, you'll gain access to a welcoming community dedicated to supporting your career every step of the way. As the nonprofit association in the profession, amta is focused on award-winning advocacy, research and education for massage therapists Ensure you're at the forefront of your profession with benefits such as comprehensive liability insurance, discounts on products and services, the Massage Therapy Journal, networking opportunities and top-tier continuing education, including free online courses. Join AMTA today and become part of a dynamic, inclusive community dedicated to shaping the future of massage therapy. Visit amtamassageorg to learn more.

Speaker 1: 1:25

Welcome to the Rubdown, a news update about massage therapy. I'm your host, kori Rivera, licensed massage therapist and correspondent. I promise that I'm going to do better to bring you news from the world of massage therapy, but today's Rubdown will include news from March, april, may and June 2025. Don't forget, the HealWell sub-stack has a helpful glossary of terms. You can find the link to this guide in the show notes and if we've missed any, please let us know by emailing us at podcast at HealWellorg. First up, healwell News. The HealWell Service Department has provided 4,271 total massage sessions in 2025 in the DC, maryland, virginia area. Healwell has started a sub-stack called More Than Hands. You can find the link in the show notes. We've had two standout articles since launching last month the Secret Health Crisis of Massage Therapists, written by myself, and Massage Therapy's Mainstream Moment, written by Cal Cates. To support our efforts and receive our posts in your email inbox, please subscribe and share with your friends, family, co-workers and baristas.

Speaker 1: 2:32

Next state and national news. The Interstate Massage Compact has passed in five states Nevada, montana, virginia, arkansas and Ohio. Two more states must pass the compact in order for it to begin to be hammered out. The compact was introduced but failed to pass in nine states Florida, washington, georgia, illinois, new York, nebraska, maine, hawaii and North Carolina. The compact was also introduced in two other states Alabama and Connecticut, and efforts are active in seven states New Jersey, michigan, pennsylvania, massachusetts, wisconsin, dc and West Virginia. Much of the pushback to the compact centers on states losing control over who can work within their borders, concerns about allowing therapists with fewer requirements to enter and work in the state and concerns about excluding current therapists who don't meet the new requirements, which really just goes to show that you can't please anyone.

Speaker 1: 3:25

Vermont has raised application fees for state registration from $75 to $90 and two-year renewal fees from $240 to $275. Vermont has a mandatory registration process instead of state licensing, but you'd be forgiven for getting confused because the Vermont Secretary of State website uses the word license. Registration does not legally protect the terms massage or massage therapist the way a license does, but the fees for registration in Vermont are comparable to, and in some cases more than, licensing fees in many other states. The American Massage Therapy Association continued to push for state licensing when it was discussing fees with the state, but the licensing request was denied.

Speaker 1: 4:04

Idaho has transitioned from one-year to two-year renewal cycles. Beginning May 19th, the Division of Occupation and Professional Licenses stated that the intent is to give massage therapists more time to focus on clients and their profession. The state also eliminated continuing education requirements entirely. Licensing fees will double to reflect the extended renewal period. The transition is staggered, based on birth year, with those born in odd years moving to the new two-year cycle. First. Oregon increased all massage therapy fees by 35 percent in an effort to rebalance the state budget. Initial and renewal license fees increased from $200 to $270. The fee changes took effect April 1st.

Speaker 1: 4:44

In Gresham, oregon, a proposed massage therapy ordinance aimed at addressing human trafficking was halted after advocacy efforts. The ordinance was drafted without the input of licensed massage professionals in Oregon. The ordinance was removed from their calendar, allowing for input from the massage therapy community. An example of a problematic rule from the ordinance is no massage business may operate between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am. This means that late shift workers, like those who work between 3 pm and 11 pm, are essentially unable to receive massage.

Speaker 1: 5:18

Utah now requires massage establishment registration for most massage businesses. The new requirement takes effect October 1st and applies to all massage businesses except sole practitioners, as long as they don't employ or contract with other licensed individuals. Establishments must complete applications, submit fees, undergo criminal background checks and maintain specific signage and documentation requirements. The law also includes strict provisions against advertising sexual services and requires compliance with health and sanitation codes just like every other healthcare establishment. Minnesota implemented criminal background checks for massage therapy business owners. This applies to individual practitioners, llcs, partnerships, directors and managers. Iowa amended continuing education requirements to allow licensed massage therapists to carry over up to 50% of excess completed CE hours from previous renewal cycles. For example, if a therapist completed 16 extra hours, they may carry over up to 8 hours into the next cycle. The intended benefit is to ensure Iowa therapists maintain up-to-date standards of practice while providing cost savings on required CE. The change became effective May 21st.

Speaker 1: 6:28

Arkansas added massage businesses and nail salons to the list of establishments required to display national human trafficking hotline information. Businesses offering massage therapy must present an eight and a half by 11 poster in restrooms and in a visible space near the entrance. A bill in Arkansas that would have required the state to create its own exam has been defeated. The bill was opposed by both AMTA and ABMP and would have caused a large administrative burden on the state. Pennsylvania proposed mandatory child abuse recognition training for massage therapists in new rules that were published by their state board of massage therapy. The proposed rules would add LMTs to the list of health professionals considered mandated reporters, which would require initial license applicants to complete three hours of training and current licensees to complete two hours during renewal. The two CE hours would count towards the existing 24-hour CE requirement rather than adding additional hours. 24-hour CE requirement rather than adding additional hours.

Speaker 1: 7:25

Arizona secured renewal of their State Board of Massage Therapy through 2031 after an unusual week in the Arizona Capitol, where the Senate abruptly adjourned on June 20th without passing any bills. Amta's lobbyists and government relations team worked behind the scenes to keep the renewal active. As the House reconvened to avoid a government shutdown, the language that authorized the Board's renewal was successfully added to a House bill which passed both chambers and headed to the governor's desk. Oklahoma faced potential licensing setbacks when their governor vetoed a bill that would have extended the sunset date for the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, which oversees massage therapy. However, a bill was passed that included a one-year extension for the Cosmetology and Barbering Board. This victory was made possible by people at all, which oversees massage therapy. However, a bill was passed that included a one-year extension for the cosmetology and barbering board. This victory was made possible by people at all levels, including associations and practitioners, who continually advocated for the massage therapy licensing in the state.

Speaker 1: 8:13

Next up we have association news. The American Massage Therapy Association has an article that highlights new research supporting massage therapy for anxiety and depression, including systemic reviews and clinical studies. Amta has also submitted statements supporting the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health's existence and funding and opposing the current administration's proposal to eliminate it. As of this recording, the NCCIH still exists. Amta has also launched a free MBLEC study video series featuring five modules covering exam preparation strategies. Abmp has an ongoing scholarship sweepstakes that we haven't mentioned before, so we're going to now. Each quarter, one student receives $5,000 and their school also receives $5,000. Please see the link in the show notes to apply. As always, the Massage Therapy Foundation continues accepting student and practitioner case reports and Bob King Legacy Grant applications for community-based work. Adrienne Asta, the former president of the Massage Therapy Foundation, received the John Belletto Distinguished Service Award at the International Massage Therapy Research Conference, recognizing her outstanding service to the massage profession through volunteer work with the Massage Therapy Foundation.

Speaker 1: 9:28

The International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Body Works June edition is out. It includes the following articles An article that proposes resilience theory as a framework for understanding massage therapy's role in cancer care. An article examining massage effectiveness across different sports and performance metrics. A systematic review and meta-analysis of physiotherapy for tendinopathies. A study on a combination of foot reflexology and back massage for hemodialysis patients. A systematic review of massage therapy for musculoskeletal conditions. And an editorial exploring research as a mechanism for strengthening collaborative healthcare.

Speaker 1: 10:07

Live events coming up include the American Massage Therapy Association 2025 National Convention, august 21st through 23rd in Dallas, texas. The Black Massage Therapist Conference in 2025, october 7th through 8th in Charlotte, north Carolina. Their theme is Stronger Together reflecting the power of unity and shared purpose within the Black massage therapist community. Next year's Alliance for Massage Therapy Education Conference has recently been announced. It will be November 6th through 8th 2026 in Kansas City, missouri. The conference has opened proposals for keynote talks, 3 CE sessions and 4 CE sessions. Early bird sponsorship pricing is available through November 30, 2025. Their theme is Stronger Together Elevating Massage Education Through Unity.

Speaker 1: 10:52

If you'd like to attend a live class with HealWell, the September SCAR class with Kathy Ryan is sold out, but you can still join her in Salt Lake City in October. This class is also likely to sell out. So you can still join her in Salt Lake City in October. This class is also likely to sell out, so we recommend that you register soon. Otherwise, we have the hospital-based massage therapy course October 28th through November 1st, and next year's pediatric massage and the clinical setting class is open, and that will be May 6th through 9th. If you have any national or state-level news about massage therapy you'd like to share, please send an email with your news and a link to your source to podcast at healwellorg. You can always join us at the HealWell online community at communityhealwellorg. This has been your news rubdown. Thank you for listening.