Oklahoma

As you know, Oklahoma passed its massage therapy licensing statute this past spring. The next step was for the Governor to appoint members to the Massage Advisory Board, which will advise the Cosmetology Board on issues regarding massage therapist licensing. The Governor completed the appointments to the Advisory Board, and the Boards have begun their work. A primary function of the Advisory Board and Cosmetology Board is to write the rules (regulations) that will fill in the details of the massage licensing statute. The deadline for the Boards to submit rules is December 23, 2016.

We recently notified you that the Oklahoma Cosmetology Board would start accepting grandfathering license applications after August 25, 2016.  That is no longer the case.  There is new information posted on the Board’s website stating:

URGENT!!!

Under Oklahoma’s new massage therapy law, every massage therapist must hold a state-issued massage therapy license by May 1, 2017 in order to practice after that date. If you do not have a license by May 1, 2017, you will not be able to legally practice in Oklahoma until you get your license. We had expected that the Cosmetology Board would issue regulations filling in the details of the new massage law prior to making license applications available, but the Board has instead issued application forms before issuing regulations.

Under the new Oklahoma massage therapy licensing law, the State Cosmetology Board is responsible for the regulation of massage therapists, with the assistance of a five-member Advisory Board on Massage Therapy. The Advisory Board will assist the Cosmetology Board in carrying out the provisions of the new law with respect to the qualifications, examination, registration, regulation, and standards of professional conduct of massage therapists.

The New Massage Therapy Licensure Requirement

Currently, Oklahoma is one of only five states in the country that does not regulate massage therapists.  Bills have been introduced in past years proposing to regulate massage therapists in Oklahoma, but none have succeeded in the legislature.  Oklahoma Senate Bill 687, introduced this legislative session, once again proposes state regulation of massage therapists in Oklahoma by a system of mandatory licensing.

Oklahoma Massage Therapy Licensing Bill Carried Over

Oklahoma Senate Bill 687, discussed in our prior legislative updates, has carried over into the 2016 legislative session.  We will keep our members apprised of the bill's status.