Massage Law Newsletter




Massage Law Newsletter - This newsletter presents the "other side" of state massage laws and state regulation. Also included are court cases, public testimony and other items of interest pertaining to massage law.

Contents Massage Law Newsletter The Healing Arts Center is a forum for alternative healing modalities. Our On-line Journals and Newsletters provides information on the "other side" of state massage laws and state regulation. Of Special Interest Journal Of Spiritual Bodywork. Vol. 4, No. 2 A New Paradigm For Massage Based on Subtle Energy and Quantum Science. by Albert Schatz and Mary L. Brewster AN INVITATION TO VISIT A NEW WORLD We invite you to join this guided tour of a new world of massage, and learn about the reality, philosophy, and subtle energies in this new world. You don't have to leave your home, family, and friends, or pay for travel and accommodations. You don't have to learn a new language. You only have to learn about a new paradigm. If you tell your clients and massage therapists about this new world, some of them may join you there. Everybody is welcome and people may stay as long they want. 2000 Volume 21 Vol.21, No.1 A Letter to Steven C. Olson, President of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) and Cheryl A. Neeley, AMTA Government Relations Staff Liason About My Unanswered Request to Marietta Flagg, President of the Pennsylvania Chapter of AMTA Volume 20 Vol.20, No.4 Will the PennsylvaniaChapter of the American Massage Therapy Association (PA-AMTA) Honor it's Commitment to "...make sure that the language of" ..."new...bill excludes any modality that does not wish to be a part of the bill." Vol.20, No.3 Correspondence With The Arizona Coalition of Massage Therapists and Bodyworkers. Part 1: Greetings and Salutations to the Arizona Coalition. Part 2: Reply from John Yates, President of the Council of Massage Therapy Educators in Arizona replies. Part 3: Albert Schatz replies to John Yates. Vol. 20, No.2 Are All State Laws that Regulate Massage Therapists Illegal? In 1989, AMTA initiated legal action against the Maryland state Board of Physical Therapy Examiners et al because the Board assumed it had a legal right to regulate massage therapists. AMTA claimed that the Board's action was illegal for reasons set forth in its complaint filed on December 8, 1989. These reasons included violation of the right to commercial speech and violation of antitrust laws. Part 6 of this report presents some sections of AMTA's complaint. We believe present-day regulation of massage therapists by state boards (of massage therapy, chiropractic, nursing, medicine, etc.) may be illegal because it violates the same laws that AMTA accused the Maryland state Board of PhysicalTherapy Examiners of violating in 1989. We believe AMTA's complaint provides evidence that state regulation of massage therapists may be illegal. We believe state regulation of massage therapists, by the above-mentioned boards, may be illegal for the same reasons that AMTA considered it illegal for the Maryland Board of Physical Therapist Examiners to regulate them. We invite you to examine the evidence." Vol.20, No.1 Why is the Arizona Coalition for Massage Therapists and Bodyworkers Promoting State Regulation? Are Massage Schools the Driving Force for Regulation, Within the Coalition? To What Extent does State Regulation = $$$$ for Massage Schools? Volume 19 Vol.19, No.4 The Case of the Arizona State Sunrise Act Versus The Arizona Coalition for Massage Therapists and Bodyworkers. Vol.19, No.3 In West Virginia, Massage Does NOT Harm People And The State Board of Massage Therapy is NOT Needed. Vol.19, No.2 Spiritual Massage Healing^sm Should be Exempt From State Regulation of Secular Massage Therapy. Vol.19, No.1 A Letter From One of Our Readers. State Massage Laws = $$$$ For Massage Schools. Volume 18 Volume 18, No.4 A Loony Local Massage Ordinance in Upper Moreland Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Vol. 18, No.3 A Letter to Gayle E. Burdick About Minnesota House Bill 401 and Senate Bill 616. Vol. 18, No.2 The Defeat of Georgia's Senate Bill 300 (To Regulate Massage Therapists to Allegeedly Protect the Public From Harm) Provides Well-Documented Evidence that Massage Is Safe - There Is No Harm. Our E-Mail to the Arizona Coalition of Massage Therapists & Bodyworkers Vol. 18, No.1 Sally Hacking and Albert Schatz Agree that the Arizona Coalition Needs Convincing Evidence of Harm.. Volume 17 Vol. 17, No.4 The Great Arizona Massage Mystery. What Harm is Judy Boyer Talking About? The Arizona Coalition has been Told Massage is Safe? Vol. 17, No.3 Don't Be Fooled by Allegations that State Regulation is Needed. Vol. 17, No.2 Abstract. What well-documented evidence do WE have that message is safe, and that state regelation is not needed to protect the public from harm? What well-documented evidence of harm does AMTA have that state regulation is needed to protect the public from harm? Our search for harm, that led us to AMTA. did not provide information about harm. Serious harm mistakenly attributed to massage. Allegations of serious harm for which there is no evidence at all. An invitation. References. Vol. 17, No. 1 Why Should Registered Massage Therapists in British Columbia do Rectal and Vaginal Massage? Request for Information (About Peter Behr) from Douglas M. McRae, Registrar of the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia. Reports, in the Massage Law Newsletter about the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia. Volume 16 Vol. 16, No.4 Another Case of Harm Mistakenly Attributed to Massage by the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia. Some Early History of State Regulation of Massage Therapists in Connecticut. Stanley Peck's 1992 Testimony at the Hearing on Senate Bill 71, Concerning Licensure of Massage Therapists. Vol. 16, No.3 Arizona Does Not eed to Regulate Massage Therapists to Protect the Public From Harm Because the Arizona Coalition Admiots that Massage is Safe, and for 2,000,000 Additional Reasons. Vol. 16, No. 2 Why Doesn't Peter Behr (Past President of the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia) Document His Allegations of Serious Harm Associated With Massage Therapists in British Columbia and Alberta? Vol. 16, No.1 Reply to a Critic. Difference Between Licensing and Certification. Volume 15 Vol. 15, No.4 Arizona Does NOT Need to Regulate Massage Therapists to Protect the Public From Harm. Vol. 15, No.3 Are Payments to Registered Massage Therapists in British Columbia, Under the Medical Services Plan, Cost-Effective? If Not, Should These Payments be Discontinued? How Much Iatrogenic Harm is Caused By Registered Massage Therapy in British Columbia? What Information Does the college of Massage Therapists of British Columbia Have about Peter Behr's Treatment and About Harm Caused by Registered Massage Therapists? And Why Do British Columbia's RMTs Need a 3,000-Hour-Training? Vol. 15, No.2 Has the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia Provided Misleading Information to the Health Professions Counsil? Vol. 15, No.1 The Great Canadian Massage Mystery. The Strange Case of People Allegedly Killed By Unregulated Massage Therapists in Powell River, British Columbia. Volume 14 Vol. 14,No. 1 The Public Spends $2 to $4 Billon Dollars For Massage Annually. Caucasian Massage Therapists Get About 92 Times More of This Money Than Afro-Americans Get: Who Will Help Minority Racial and Ethnic Groups Get a More Equitable Share of All That Money? A Letter to Claude J. Gagnon. President, AMTA Council of Schools. A Letter to Robert Jantsch. President, Pennsylvania Chapter of AMTA. A Letter to Maureen A. Moor. President of AMTA. Some Interesting Comments. Is It True That "Most People Don't Know The Difference Between a Good or Bad Massage?" Vol 14. No. 2 Poetry That Calls to Mind State Regulation Vol 14. No. 3 The College Of Massage Therapists Of British Columbia Tells Us There Is No Significant Risk Of Harm By Massage Therapists In The U.S. The College Of Massage Therapists Of British Columbia (CMTBC) has NOT Provided Acceptable Evidence That Non-Resistered Practitioners Are Any More Of A Threat To The Public Health, Safety, And Welfare In British Columbia Than Massage Therapists Are In The U.S. Vol 14. No. 4 What Is A "Good" Massage? What Is A "Bad" Massage? And Who Is Most Qualified To Decide Whether A Massage Is "Good" Or "Bad"? Volume 13 Vol. 13. No.4 Pennsylvania Does Not Need Senate Bill 1220 to Protect the Public From Harm. Will Green, President of the IMA Group Tells Us that Massage Therapists do Not Harm People. This is Why Massage Therapists Now Pay 50% Less for Malpractice Insurance Than They Did Five Years Ago. Vol. 13. No.3 A Declaration of Conscience. Why I am opposed to State Regulation, National Certification, and COMTA. Why is the Minnesota Chapter of the AMTA Supporting a Bill to Regulate Massage Therapists? Vol. 13. No.2 655,200 Reasons Why Minnesota Does Not Need to Regulate Massage Therapists to Protect the Public From Harm. There's No Harm in Georgia and No Harm in the Canadian Province of Quebec. So, Why Would There Be Any Harm in Minesota? The World of Massage is Not Flat. The Heliocentric Role of State Regulation in the Solar System of Bodywork is Kapput. Proponents of State Regulation Are Not Fuegans. Vol. 13. No. 1 PA Senate Bill 1220, to Regulate Massage, is Illegal. Senate Bill 1220's restricted use of the Generic Term "Massage" Illegally Prohibits "commercial" Speech Because Unregulated Massage Therapists Have NOT Harmed Anybody. Volume 12 Vol. 12. No. 4 PA Senate Bill 1220, to Regulate Massage, is Illegal Because it Violates Constitutional Law and U.S. Supreme Court Decisions Which: Protect Freedom of Speech and Freedom of the Press? Prohibit Discrimination and Arbitrary Governmental Interference? Prohibit Restraint of Trade, Monopolies, and Unfair Trade Practices? Senate Bill 1220 is Not Needed For Consumer Protection Because: Unregulated Massage Therapists Have NOT Harmed People. Vol. 12. No.3 Pennsylvania does not need Senate Bill 1220 to regulate massage therapists "To Protect the Public from Harm" because there is no harm. Vol. 12. No.2. Why is "Physical Therapy" the "Business" of the American Massage Therapy Associtation (AMTA)? Why does AMTA support state regulation? Vol. 12. No. 1 Correspondence with William A. Philips about regulation of massage therapists in Pennsylvania. Volume 11 Vol. 11. No. 4 Why is the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Massage Therapy Association (PA-AMTA) Still Promoting Licensure? Retta Flagg did not answer my questions. Vol. 11. No. 3 Pennsylvania Does Not Need to Regulate Massage Therapists to Protect the Public Safety, Health, and Welfare; Or For Any Other Reason. Only a Minority of AMTA Members in Pennsylvania Favors Licensure. Food For Thought. Vol. 11, No.2 Illinois Does Not Need to Regulate Massage Therapists To Protect The Public Safety, Health, and Welfare; Or For Any Other Reason. What's Happening in Georgia? Letters To Peter Behr in British Columbia. Correspondence with Elizabeth Leach in Ontario. Elizabeth Leach's Reply. Vol. 11, No. 1 The College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia wants to do Vaginal and Rectal massage. Part 1: How would CMTBC train massage therapists to do vaginal and rectal massage. Part 2: Why should Registered Massage Therapists do vaginal and rectal massage? Part 3: Is CMTBC a century our of date? Part 4: CMTBC's submission. Part 5: How other agencies in British Columbia reacted to. CMTBC's request to expand its scope of practice. Part 6: The Health Professions Council said, "NO!" Part 7: CMTBC's harm was "weighed and found wanting" Part 8: "All's well that ends well" Part 9: "What could be dangerous"? Part 10: Monopoly control is prohibited in British Columbia Part 11: What are the College of Massage Therapists and the Health Professions Council, and how do they function? Part 12: What is self-regulation, and how does it function? A Report of Harm Caused by State Regulation. Volume 10 Vol. 10. No.4 Minnesota does not need to regulate massage so, why has regulation been promoted by the Minnesota Chapter of AMTA and the Colition for State Regulation of Massage Therapy and Oriental Bodywork? Appendix: My communication with Jackson Petersburg and Gayle E. Burdick. Thank you for your reply, Dr. Pitts. Vol. 10. No.3 Oriental bodyworker arrested at gunpoint, handcuffed, and jailed in New York City. Bodyworkers, who are not licensed massage therapists, are now subject to arrest in New York State because of a 1966 anti-prostitution law. What's happening, and why? Have those who promoted state regulation of massage therapists protested the arrest of the oriental bodyworker on May 26? If not, why not? Arresting prostitutes in as unjustifiable drain on police time and money. A letter to Howard Safir, New York City Commissioner of Police. A letter to Johanna Duncan-Poitier, New York State Deputy Commissioner of Education, for the Office of the Professions. Vol. 10. No.2 A request for information about the controversy over the scope of practice of registered massage therapists in British Columbia. Vol. 10. No.1 A Confrontation between Human rights and monopoly control in British Columbia. The Controversy about regulation involves the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the United Nations' International Bill of Human Rights. Part 1: CMTBS's "silly" proposal created controversy Part 2: Follow the money trail to find out what drives the regulation machine. Part 3: OBITUARY. The death of CMTBC's "silly" 1995 proposal. Part 4: The prognosis of CMTBS's 1998 proposal is not good. Part 5: From potential harm to harm that has actually occurred. Part 6: Does CMTBS's 1998 proposal violate theCanadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms? Part 7: Does CMTBS's 1998 proposal violate theUnited Nations' International Bill of Human Rights? Appendix A: How Lincoln Lau organized opposition to CMTBS's proposals. Volume 9 Vol. 9. No.4 What well-documented evidence justifies the alleged need for state regulation in Minnesota? State liciensure creates state-sanctioned monopolies, reduces competition, and restricts information to the public. Vol. 9. No.3 Applying Tom Paine's Common Sense to the controversy of state regulation of massage. Should state regulation, the Commission of Massage Therapy accreditation and the National Certification Examination be absolished? Two alternatives to state regulation, COMTA and NCE AVAID MONOPOLY CONTROL. The economics of Natinal Certification. Vol. 9. No. 2 Neither the public nor massage therapists need state regulation. Is state regulation of massage illegal? The public doesn't need state regulation. So, who does want it and why? Part 1: History repeats itself. Part 2: The King is naked. The Emperor has no clothers. Part 3: State regulation needs to be evaluated because it has so many inadequacies. Vol 9. No.1 The National Certification Examination Devotes Little Content to Contraindications. Part 1: This is more vidence that massage is safe and state regulation is not needed to protect the public from harm. Part 2: A pony is more evidence that massage is safe and state regulation is not needed to protect the public from harm. Volume 8 Vol.8. No.4 An examination of the National Certification Examination raises questions aobut its validity. Vol.8. No.3 Our common sense approach to contraindications and state regulation of Massage Therapists. Vol.8. No.2 State licensure of Massaage Therapists is a Russian Matrushka Doll. Vol.8. No.1 Our publications on state regulation, alleged harm, National Certification, etc. in periodicals other than the Massage Law Newsletter. Volume 7 Vol. 7. No. 4 A Declaration of Independence for massage therapists. Vol. 7. No. 3 Minnesota's House Bill 685 and Senate Bill 1042 would put competent, hard-working massage therapists, mostly women, out of work even though they have not harmed anybody. Minnesota needs House Bill 537 which provides freedom of access to complementary and alternative health care, including massage. Vol. 7. No. 2 State regulation is not needed to protect the public from harm because licensed massage therapists harmed people but unlicensed massage therapists did not. Vol 7. No.1 Minnesota does not need House Bill 685 to regulate massage therapists because they don't harm people. House Bill 685 does not comply with relevant laws. We need freedom of choice for cnsumers and freedom to practice for practitioners Alternatives for House Bill 685 State regulation of massage makes no sense. Volume 6 Vol. 6. No. 4 National Certification is not needed today for the same reasons it was not needed in 1993. Vol. 6. No. 3 Pennsylvania Senate Bill 1171 is Dead! May it rest in Peace! Long Live Freedom! The House that "PALC" Built. Vol. 6. No. 2 Minnesota does not need to regulate Massage because regulation is not needed "For the safety and well-being of the citizens of the state." 1998 Vol. 6. No. 1 An Open Letter to Melanie Romanoski. Editor, Ontario Massage Therapist Newsletter. Toronto Canada. Volume 5 Vol. 5. No. 4 We need freedom of choice for practitioners and consumers. We don't need National Certification and monopoly control. Vol. 5 . No.3 Why don't People, who promote Senate Bill 1171, Answer Questions about that bill? If they don't answer the questions, why are they promoting the bill? Vol. 5. No.2 Massage Should Not Be Deregulated Because it Does Not Cause Harm. Research shows that massage does not cause harm. Where adequate research was done, no harm was found and no state regulation was enacted. There's no need for state regulation to protect the public from harm or for any other reason. Vol. 5. No. 1 An open letter to Elizbeth Leach, Executive Director, Ontario Massage Therapist Association. Volume 4 Vol. 4. No. 4 The controversy over registration of massage therapists in British Columbia. "Let there be light. Vol. 4. No. 3 Do state massage laws and local massage ordinances violate U.S. Constitutional Law, U.S. Supreme Court decisions, and the United Nations' International Bill of Rights? Vol. 4. No. 2 Does PA Senate Bill 1171 violate laws that: Protect freedom of speech and freedom of the press? Prohibit discrimination and arbitrary governmental interference? Prohibit restraint of trade, monopolies, and unfair labor practices? An open letter to Barbara Mikos. Vol. 4. No. 1 Should the Tucson, Arizona, Committee of Massage Examiners be abolished? Part 1: The nature of the controversy Part 2: The nature of this report Part 3: Is the 1000-hour training necessary? Part 4: Does the regulatory license reduce prostitution? Part 5: Does the regulatory license protect the public from harm? Part 6: Does the regulatory license discriminate? Part 7: Is the Committee needed to process complaints? Part 8: Is the regulatory license monopoly control? Part 9: What constitutional law tells us. Part 10: What U.S. Supreme Court reports tell us. Volume 3 Vol. 3. No. 4 Senate Bill 1171's 200-hour training for reflexology is absurd because: People are certified as reflexologists after taking a one-day (7-hour) workshop. Children and church parishioners learn reflexology in an hour or less. And parents can learn reflexology from books. Vol. 3. No. 3 Oklahoma massage therapy bill is dead. PA Senate Bill 1171 rests on myths. Vol. 3. No. 2 Pennsylvania Senate Bill 1171 is unreal. The more proponents try to justify Senate Bill 1171, the more convincing evidence they provide that Senate Bill 1171 is not needed. Why does Senate Bill 1171 require a 200-hour training for reflexologists to massage people's feet? The Red Cross requires only 4- and 9-hour trainings for cardiopulmonary resuscitation to treat people with acute, life-threatening problems. Senate Bill 1171 is a good example of why Pennsylvania needs a Sunrise Law. Vol. 3. No. 1 Pennsylvania does not need to regulate massage and does not need Senate Bill 1171. Pennsylvania senators should find out whether massage causes harm, as Georgia senators did. Volume 2 1997 Vol. 2. No. 4 Pennsylvania does not need Senate Bill 1171 to regulate massage. Pennsylvania needs de- regulation. Vol. 2. No. 3 Attention: Pennsylvania Legislators. More people are struck by lightening than are injured by massage. Why regulate massage which does not harm people? Vol. 2. No. 2 The corporatization of massage. An economic perspective. Another letter to the Pennsylvania Licensure Coalition (PALC). Reality. Freedom of choice? We look for harm. We find no harm. Vol. 2. No. 1 Position of the Pennsylvania Licensure Coalition. Position of the Pennsylvania Coalition Opposed to Licensure. Volume 1 Vol. 1. No. 4 Attention... Pennsylvania Legislators... Why fix something that's not broken? California legislators require evidence that: One attorney says The Pennsylvania Licensure Coalition. What harm? Pennsylvania legislators should ask the Coalition: Where's the harm? $1000 REWARD. 1993 Vol. 1. No. 3 Special issue on massage law humor. The National Certification Examination for State Massage Laws (NCESML) and The National Association for the Accreditation of State Massage Laws (NAASML). The examination. Parts A and B. Vol. 1. No. 2 Will a state massage law put you out of business? For information about state massage laws. To protect your self against a state massage law, insist that the pushers tell you. If you don't want a state massage law, you can stop it. Vol. 1. No. 1 Information about state massage laws. Begin by asking questions. Also ask about the state law's certification requirements. Find out what specific benefits YOU will have with a state massage law that YOU don't have without it. If you decide you don't want a state massage law, ACT NOW! Information that is available. Information about Dr. Albert Schatz. [Note: Vol. 1. No. 1 include an outline of five Reports on state massage laws. The reports themselves will be available on this site very soon. ]


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