SAVE THE DATE
October 21, 2023 AMTA Ohio State Convention
October 23-28, 2023 National Massage Therapy Awareness Week

 

On June 22, 2022, the AMTA sent out an email asking for your comments about the Interstate Compact.
 
Since the summer of 2021, AMTA has been working with the Council of State Governments (CSG) and FSMTB as part of the Technical Advisory Group to help guide the direction of drafting the language of the Interstate Compact. We are pleased to announce that on June 8th, the draft language was made available for review and public comments. 
 
What is the Interstate Compact?
The Interstate Compact’s purpose is to support the mobility of licensed massage therapists across the country and to ease the existing burdens of license portability. AMTA fully supports the rights of massage therapists to freely move from state-to-state without excessive administrative and financial burdens.
 
AMTA’s Concerns with the Current Interstate Compact Draft
We want to make you aware that AMTA is concerned with some elements of the current Interstate Compact draft language. One key issue is the requirement of at least six hundred and twenty-five (625) clock hours of massage therapy education for therapists to participate, when nearly half of the licensed states in the country have a 500-hour requirement. While we support standards for the profession, this 625-hour requirement specific to the Interstate Compact could potentially exclude massage therapists practicing in the 500-hour states, or those that were grandfathered in years’ ago, from being eligible to participate.
 
We believe that if a massage therapist has met the requirements for licensing in their home state and is in good standing, these should be the only requirements to participate in the compact. AMTA will be requesting that this specific language be modified to make the compact more inclusive for our massage community.
 
Take Action and Make Your Voice Heard
We strongly encourage all massage therapists and stakeholders to review the draft language and submit your concerns, support or opposition of it. The compact draft and the survey for feedback can be found on CSG’s webpage. 
 
To learn more, you are welcome to attend a virtual weekly compact review meeting.
We also encourage you to reach out to our Government Relations team with any questions regarding the Interstate Compact draft. As always, we continue to advocate for all massage therapists as we work with CSG and FSMTB on this important initiative.
 
Your AMTA Team

 

 

Support HB (House Bill) 81 & SB (Senate Bill) 55 to stop unlicensed massage!

American Massage Therapy Association – Ohio Chapter

What do the bills do?

-A loophole currently exists in Ohio law that allows individuals to perform massage, as long as they do not call what they are doing “massage therapy” or advertise their practice as “medical” or “therapeutic massage”.  HB 81 and SB 55 close this loophole.

Why does Ohio need this legislation?

-Ohio has a proud history of recognizing massage therapists as an integral part of the healthcare delivery system and has maintained a highly regarded license at the State Medical Board. Ohio’s loophole needs to be closed. Unlicensed massage puts patients at risk of harm and injury and puts LMTs in danger of bad actors. At best, unlicensed massage could hurt patients due to untrained techniques, and at worst, is used as a front for human trafficking and prostitution.

Do HB 81 and SB 55 allow townships to increase fees on LMTs?

-No. The $250 filling fee and $125 renewal fee mentioned in the bills are current law (and could be done today) and require a legislative action by the individual township trustees to be issued.

-Under current law, townships can regulate massage and can create and require their own township massage license. HB 81 and SB 55 delete their ability to “create a license” and amends their oversight ability.  Also, under current law, a township could pass a law requiring LMTs to get periodic physical exams to confirm that the LMT “is free of communicable diseases.”  HB 81 and SB 55 delete this ability.

What do HB 81 and SB 55 do for local governments?

-Both bills retain township and municipal (under home rule) authority to zone, set hours, and make laws considered necessary, but requires that any massage be done by an LMT.

Will these bills help the large massage franchises only?

-No. HB 81 and SB 55 will stop unlicensed massage. All LMTs in good standing with the State Medical Board, no matter their location of business, will continue to be able to practice with no new oversight from the State of Ohio

Why should LMTs support these bills?

-Licensed Massage Therapists ARE trained limited practitioners of medicine. These bills recognize LMTs as such and takes back our medical profession from bad actors such as human traffickers. This bill prioritizes the health and safety of LMTs, our patients, and the entire State of Ohio.

AMTA HB 81 SB 55 FAQ (click to view as a pdf)

With the support of the Medical Board of Ohio, the AMTA submitted testimony in support of an advisory committee for massage therapy.

Here is the link to the video:

http://ohiochannel.org/collections/ohio-house-finance-subcommittee-on-health-and-human-services

(Segment begins at 1 hour & 33 mins into the committee meeting)

Here is the Statement made by AMTA Ohio President, Melissa Ryan

Spoofing Scam Continues

Warning from the State Medical Board of Ohio

Licensees should remain aware that a scam continues to target and affect Ohio prescribers. Scammers are calling, faxing and emailing medical professionals claiming to be agents of the State Medical Board of Ohio (SMBO), agents of the DEA or agents of the FBI. These scammers claim that the professionals’ medical and drug licenses have been compromised and are being used by other entities in a drug trafficking scheme. As a result of these allegations, the scammers direct the medical provider to wire money to foreign bank accounts. Please remember, SMBO investigators, DEA agents and FBI agents will not ask for fine payment or personal/sensitive information over the phone.

When the scammers communicate via phone call, they spoof the legitimate phone number for the SMBO (614-466-3934). Be aware that scammers have the ability to spoof phone numbers to appear as though they legitimately belong to the entity they are claiming to be. If the Medical Board is truly conducting an investigation, and that individual faces action against their license, they will receive an official notice of opportunity for a hearing either via certified mail or by personal service. Further, emails originating from actual Medical Board staff end in @med.ohio.gov.

There is additional information posted on our website. Learn how to identify a legitimate investigation, how to verify if the caller is from the Medical Board and how to file a complaint if you are contacted by a scammer.

If you are contacted by a scammer, please report the incident to your local law enforcement and Ohio’s Attorney General by filing a complaint online at ohioprotects.org or by calling 800-282-0515.

https://med.ohio.gov/Publications/Recent-News/spoofing-scam-continues

Check your Email & Spam folder for an email from the Medical Board

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