June Rubdown

You can find the link to this guide in the show notes . If we've missed any , please let us know by emailing us at podcast at HealWellorg . First up HealWell News . The HealWell Service Department provided 820 sessions in June to the DC , maryland , virginia area , bringing our total massage sessions for the year to 5,402 .

Healwell Homecoming is September 20th through 21st . In previous news updates we talked about the CE classes that will be available on that Friday and on Saturday we will be holding an event called the Grand Noodle . This 3CE event will see attendees talking about the profession of massage therapy .

Conversation prompts will be organized around HealWell's three areas of focus service , education and research .

The Grand Noodle's purpose is to discuss real solutions to the real problems facing the massage therapy profession . Come , make connections , find support and talk about the heavy things with hope , pragmatism and laughter . Nothing is easy , but we can do hard things together .

Up next state and national news , a Texas court has temporarily halted the enforcement of the 100% rule . The court's decision is in response to a lawsuit filed by the Career Education Colleges and Universities , a national organization which serves post-secondary career schools .

A second suit , also filed in Texas , was denied , creating uncertainty in how the rules will be enforced in the future . The rule was originally set to go into effect on July 1st . On June 7th , the American Massage Therapy Association also filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education in response to concerns expressed by its massage school members .

I spoke with Lisa Studjink , ceo

and General Counsel for the American Massage Therapy Association . My main question for Lisa was why AMTA chose to file this lawsuit .

Because we knew that restricting Pell Grants for students going to massage schools would have a huge impact , not only on our members but on the entire educational landscape within the profession , on the massage therapists and on employers and the workforce for years to come , workforce for years to come .

So we filed the suit , first and foremost , to bring back the 150% rule . That's been working quite well for 30 years and in fact , four years ago , the Department of Education re-looked at the rule back in 2020 , and they had a consensus group look at the rule and they added an alternative at that point , but the 150% rule stayed the same .

So it was working and it's been working for 30 years . So that's primarily why we did this . And then , second , recognizing that change may come . Second , recognizing that change may come , that change may be due , to really gain more time to study the effects of any change in the rule across the profession and across the school market .

We know that schools vary widely in their approaches to education and in their concerns about what the rule means for them .

Obviously , there are schools that don't use Title IV , don't rely on Title IV federal financial aid , and the AMTA represents that broad spectrum , the broad spectrum of members , of school members and AMTA doesn't know , and no one knows really , the impact that this rule is going to have in the long term .

We're also concerned that the department's rule would take away the opportunity for many young people , especially women , who obviously make up the majority of students in the profession , and also minorities , many of whom have certain economic disadvantages that make the full range of federal financial aid so important for them to have .

Abmp also says that it will continue to push for increased education requirements for currently licensed therapists in states that are raising their entry-level requirements . For currently licensed therapists in states that are raising their entry-level requirements . In state news , ohio has joined Nevada in the Interstate Compact .

Five more states are required to join the Compact before a committee can be created to iron out the rules . Louisiana has a bill waiting for their governor's signature . It will raise entry-level education requirements from 500 to 625 hours . It will also update background check requirements and reinstate lapsed licenses .

Colorado has raised its entry-level education requirement from 500 to 650 hours . It has also passed a bill that will require periodic criminal background checks for massage establishment owners , operators and employees .

This new requirement does not apply to licensed massage therapists , who are already required to submit a background check as part of their initial licensing process . The state of Maryland has passed two new bills . The first alters their massage therapy scope of practice rules to include the use of instruments in soft tissue manipulation , including scraping and vibration .

Such tools will require the massage therapist to complete training . This bill also requires state and national criminal history checks before a massage therapy license can be reinstated . The second bill passed in Maryland creates a fine for an unauthorized massage therapy practice .

Conviction will result in a felony offense and will instill either a fine or jail time as punishment . Punishment , florida has passed a bill granting its Department of Health more power to suspend the license of a massage therapist or establishment if an employee is arrested for certain offenses like prostitution , kidnapping or human trafficking .

The state's Surgeon General can also suspend a license if there is probable cause of sexual misconduct . The bill explicitly forbids sexual activity in massage establishments and allows the Department of Health and law enforcement to investigate these places to help identify potential human trafficking .

The bill also prohibits the use of a massage establishment as living quarters unless it has already been zoned as residential property . During inspections , department of Health investigators must ask for a valid government ID from all employees and therapists . If an employee cannot provide ID , the Department of Health must notify federal immigration authorities .

Our next segment is news from the National Massage Therapy Associations . The Coalition of National Massage Therapy Organizations met June 10th and 11th . I hope to have updates about what was discussed at the meeting in future news updates . Prior to the meeting , a petition was written by massage therapist Julie Onofrio on Changeorg .

The petition was signed by 450 massage therapists . Abmp has written a response to the petition on their news website , which you can read in full using the link in the show notes . The United States Organization of Licensed Massage Therapists has added a new board member , christy Waltrip , from Louisiana , as their Director

of Education . Christy will be overseeing USOLMT's educational programs , including developing online learning opportunities and leadership training for members and expanding on CE provider partnerships . Usolmt has an opening on their board for a Director of Advocacy . This is a volunteer position .

Duties include development and oversight of all USOLMT advocacy efforts , including workplace advocacy for employees and employers , and local , state and national government relations . They are also looking for volunteers who are interested in serving as a point person for each state .

A state point person will be the point of contact , keeping USOLMT up to date on in-state movements for change in the profession and statewide massage therapy issues . For more information , please see the link in the show notes . The Massage Therapy Foundation is accepting schools' application for the Bob King Legacy Grant for community-based work .

Legacy grants are between $500 and $1,500 , and the deadline is September 1st , the International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork released its second volume for 2024 . It contains an editorial from Amanda Basquill on the topic of practitioners sharing their experiences with the journal .

Other articles include a study on the effect of massage on knee-joint position sense , a comparison on the effectiveness of myofascial release versus placebo on lumbar lordosis and a study from Indonesia comparing the effectiveness of tepuric therapy and deep tissue massage on nonspecific low back pain .

The National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork has approved a new three-year strategic plan . The plan builds on NCBTMB's mission of elevating the massage profession by establishing and advancing the highest credentials and standards of excellence . I will be speaking with a representative from NCBTMB at a later date to get more information .

The American Massage Therapy Association has been recognized by the American Society of Association Executives for their advocacy campaign titled Advancing the Integration of Massage Therapy in Healthcare . The campaign's goal was Advancing the Integration of Massage Therapy in Healthcare . The campaign's goal was to expand the use of massage therapy in managing health conditions .

It focused on legislative efforts and working with healthcare providers , insurance companies and patients . Amt has also been recognized by the Friends of Veterans Affairs Medical Care for supporting research on the benefits of massage therapy for military and veteran populations . For more information about that specific research , you can follow the link in the show notes .

And here are the massage therapy events coming up . If you want to catch a HealWell live class , we have oncology classes August 23rd through 25th in Harrisburg , pennsylvania , and October 23rd through 25th in Keene , new Hampshire . Healwell's hospital-based massage therapy stewardship is November 5th through 8th in Washington DC .

We have SCAR classes September 21st through 22nd in Fairfax , virginia , and October 26th through 27th in Santa Monica , california . And , as mentioned before , healwell Homecoming is September 20th through the 21st . Other live conferences include the AFMTE Educational Conference July 11th through 13th in Kansas

City , missouri . The AMTA National Convention is September 12th in Tampa , florida . The keynote speaker is Dolly Chug and , whether or not you can attend the convention , I highly recommend you read her book the Person you Mean to Be . It is an incredible work of accountability and compassion .

The FSMTB Annual Meeting is October 3rd through 5th in Washington DC and the Black Massage Therapist Conference is October 8th and 9th in Charlotte , north Carolina . Early bird tickets will go on sale on July 14th .

Lauren Ramosli , professor of clinical neurosciences and foundation chair of physiotherapy at the University of South Australia , will be doing a rare tour of North America in September and October . He'll be visiting Vancouver , san Francisco and New York City . You can check out his TED Talk on pain at the link in the show notes .

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 heolorg . You can subscribe to our Patreon for full interviews and you can always join us in the Huel online community . You can now text the show by clicking the link in the show notes .

Each news update I'll be asking a question and reading responses the following month . This month's question is what do you wish you had learned in your entry-level education ? This has been your June News . Rep Down and thank you for listening .