09/11/2015
Our last Virginia Legislative Update discussed 2012 HB 543, which initially proposed a new mandatory state license requirement for Virginia massage therapists. The bill was substantially amended during the legislative process, and the final version of the bill made only minor changes to the existing law which did not include a mandatory licensing provision. The amended bill became law in April 2012, and is codified at Virginia Code § 54.1-3029. Virginia has therefore retained its certification standard, which requires that a person must obtain a massage certification from the state nursing board as a massage therapist in order to use any title or other designation which implies that he or she is a massage therapist or certified massage therapist.