Being an advocate
Why become involved?
Because Licensed Massage Therapists are the primary stakeholders in our profession, it is important that we invest the time to make the elected leadership aware of legislative issues that impact our profession and their livelihoods. The American Massage Therapy Association Oklahoma Chapter Government Relations committee will provide Massage Therapists the opportunity to meet with their Legislators and staff to promote the benefits of massage therapy, discuss issues impacting our profession and lobby for their support of our profession.
Great! you want to support progressive government relations for massage in Oklahoma! There is alot to learn to be able to be effective in the realm of legislative advocacy, hopefully the links here will be a great start for you to begin.
First, contact us at govrelations@amtaok.org , let us know that you are willing to help!
Look over the following:
Communicating with your legislators
Massage Therapy Profession Report 2011- this is a link to the National Website, you'll need to log in with your member number and password.
Understand the local laws in Oklahoma (from the previous page)
Oklahoma Specifics
finding your legislators: http://www.oklegislature.gov/FindMyLegislature.aspx
Why We Need Massage Therapy Regulations
Massage therapy has a significant impact on a person’s health and well-being. The public has a right to expect that a massage therapist has the qualifications needed to practice effectively and safely. So, legal recognition of the practice of massage therapy and clearly-stated requirements to practice are essential to promote the profession and protect the health, safety and welfare of the general public.
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Legal recognition of massage therapy in the form of state licensure creates standards of minimum competency. Competency is measured and enforced through formal education, training, and examination requirements.
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Legal recognition of massage therapy ensures that individuals have met the eligibility requirements needed to practice massage therapy and that they are qualified to represent themselves to the public as state licensed massage therapists.
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By providing a legal definition of the scope of massage therapy practice, professional licensure helps consumers identify the responsibilities and services unique to a massage therapist. It allows consumers to select the most appropriate massage therapy professional for their needs and brings the benefit of open access to the selection process.
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Legal recognition of massage therapy through licensure enables a state or jurisdiction to discipline a massage therapist. States do not have the ability to regulate a profession that is not formally recognized in statute. Professional licensure laws enhance public safety by enforcing disciplinary actions against non-compliant practitioners.
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Legal recognition of massage therapy through licensure protects the public in other ways as well. It establishes a consistent standard of practice which is enforceable by a professional code of ethics. In addition, it establishes a formal grievance process for consumers that helps prevent unethical and/or non-compliant massage therapists from continuing to practice.
How can we achieve fair, consistent massage therapy licensure laws?
The most significant problem associated with professional massage therapy licensure is the lack of consistency among the 43 states and District of Columbia that have some form of regulation in place. This could be due, in part, to a lack of a centralized government relations strategy which has left us with a patchwork of state and city laws. The wide-ranging massage therapy regulations have presented many challenges for therapists who relocate from one city or state to another, for health care professionals trying to refer patients for massage therapy, for the patients themselves, and for third party reimbursement.
AMTA supports consistent massage therapy licensure standards that encourage reciprocity between states and eventually achieve overall portability of massage therapy credentials. Portability, quite simply, means that the education and training credentials of a licensed massage practitioner could be more easily accepted when a practitioner moves to or opens a location in another state. AMTA is working to improve the current regulatory environment through the creation of a centralized government relations strategy designed to achieve fair and consistent licensing in all states. This is the top advocacy priority for AMTA and it requires a long-term commitment.
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