03/03/2021
So Idaho is trying to pass legislation that concerns several professions. We are going to focus on the fact that they wish to deregulate massage therapy. In short, it means anyone can work as an MT without a license or schooling in Idaho.
Lets take a moment to talk about how terrible an idea this is.
If this passes, then it leads to a whole host of problems, both for the public and for trained MTs as a whole. This includes, but is not limited to:
-Untrained massage, which can lead to injury to the public.
-"Parlors", illegal businesses running under the label of an MT practice. This is usually seen as places that have "happy ending" massages.
-Damage to the reputation of actual, respectable practices due to the above.
-Dangerous situations for the MT, such as solicitation or other misunderstandings of what an actual, trained MT does.
We already have some issues being recognized as legitimate practices due to preconceived notions of massage therapy, but regulation has helped reduce such issues, despite Idaho already having very relaxed regulations in place. This legislation will remove those protections.
In short, this is a very bad idea, and could make it dangerous for me and many other trained MTs to work in Idaho. Please pass this around and make sure people are informed. Even if you don't work in this field, it does impact you as our clients or potential clients. Thank you.