a community of practitioners

State Licensing

I'm a little confused by what is going on. If anyone has the answers, PLEASE inform us, as I'm sure we are all ears. I just decided to look up information on our state license. Well, as I'm sure you know SB318 went in to affect and pretty much anyone under a physician/chiro/PT can perform massage. Bad news for us as well as the general public. I shudder at the health issues regarding that one. So, this is renewal year, correct? At www.idfpr.com it is showing that "this profession is not in renewal". So, I decided to look up the Massage Licensing Act. Apparently, the entire kit-n-caboodle is "scheduled to be repealed January 1, 2012". So, what does this mean? Are we not required to get a license this year? Are we just sitting here waiting until 2012? I'm going to e-mail them to find out, but if anyone else is aware of the situation, let us know!

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Tracy Smodilla on January 19, 2010 at 10:19am

Michael McAleese said:

How and what can I do as a LMT and a school Owner?

Tracy Smodilla said:
Marissa-Thanks for your reply and comments. Yes, we are all excited about the GRC Toolkit and it is one of the many valuable resources available to the AMTA members. This initiative was in response to the many LMT's out there who also said "I want to get involved, but I'm not sure how to do it." The tools will take you step-by-step through the process. However, I continue to stress that these tools are really designed to effectively engage LMT's with state legislators and exercise the power of their votes; in short, we would hope that you would personalize each letter to reflect your specific needs as licensed massage professional. You would, at the very least, need to properly address a letter to your own state representatives and senators. But don't worry....along with sample letters and ad hoc letters that will posted as needed, you'll get "Do's and Dont's", a robust "who's who" in Springfield directory, etc. Further to that, there will be a section on dealing with Municipalities.

Lastly, regarding your license, even though the MLA is set to sunset in 2012, all massage therapists in Illinois must have a license to practice. I know, I know....some of you are thinking, "But how can the chiro's delegate massage to an unlicensed "therapist"??" There, friends, is where you need to be diligent. No person not holding a valid Illinois license for massage therapy as mandated by the MLA may describe themselves, advertise themselves or their services or extend themselves as massage therapists. To do so would be a violation of the MLA and carries a penalty of $5,000.00, and because this is an infraction of the MLA, it needs to be reported.

I really look forward to hearing more from this group and others.

Tracy Smodilla
Trinity Therapeutic Massage and Wellness

Permalink Reply by Tracy Smodilla on January 19, 2010 at 10:32am

Michael:

I'd encourage all LMT's and school owners to become more aware of municipal issues and state legislation that impacts licensed massage therapy and get involved in resolving those issues. Our chapter has invested in the resources and spent many volunteer hours protecting IL LMT's and we're pretty happy to share our knowledge, but we all need to come together to present a unified front in Springfield. There's much to be done, but many hands make light work! :)

Michael McAleese said:

How and what can I do as a LMT and a school Owner?

Tracy Smodilla said:
Marissa-Thanks for your reply and comments. Yes, we are all excited about the GRC Toolkit and it is one of the many valuable resources available to the AMTA members. This initiative was in response to the many LMT's out there who also said "I want to get involved, but I'm not sure how to do it." The tools will take you step-by-step through the process. However, I continue to stress that these tools are really designed to effectively engage LMT's with state legislators and exercise the power of their votes; in short, we would hope that you would personalize each letter to reflect your specific needs as licensed massage professional. You would, at the very least, need to properly address a letter to your own state representatives and senators. But don't worry....along with sample letters and ad hoc letters that will posted as needed, you'll get "Do's and Dont's", a robust "who's who" in Springfield directory, etc. Further to that, there will be a section on dealing with Municipalities.

Lastly, regarding your license, even though the MLA is set to sunset in 2012, all massage therapists in Illinois must have a license to practice. I know, I know....some of you are thinking, "But how can the chiro's delegate massage to an unlicensed "therapist"??" There, friends, is where you need to be diligent. No person not holding a valid Illinois license for massage therapy as mandated by the MLA may describe themselves, advertise themselves or their services or extend themselves as massage therapists. To do so would be a violation of the MLA and carries a penalty of $5,000.00, and because this is an infraction of the MLA, it needs to be reported.

I really look forward to hearing more from this group and others.

Tracy Smodilla
Trinity Therapeutic Massage and Wellness