(Overland Park, KS, April 1, 2011) The Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB) announces the launch of a project to develop a Model Practice Act (MPA) for the profession. The FSMTB board of directors has appointed an MPA Task Force comprised of representatives from the regulatory community of the FSMTB member boards and agencies.

Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards Model Practice Act Task Force members:

Jane Johnson MPA Task Force Chair and Chair, Georgia Board of Massage Therapy

Heather Bennouri Vice Chair, Oregon Board of Massage Therapists

Dr. Kathleen Doyle Executive Secretary, New York State Board for Massage Therapy

Yvonne Feinleib Director, Texas Department of State Health Services Massage Therapy Program

Karen Goff Ford Chair, Florida Board of Massage Therapy

Rick Greely State Medical Board of Ohio Massage Therapy Advisory Committee

Deborah Overholt Chair, New Jersey Board of Massage and

Carolyn Talley-Porter Chair, South Carolina Board of Massage/Bodywork Therapy

The Model Practice Act is intended to provide a resource to legislatures and massage therapy boards when addressing issues related to the public protection mission of regulating the practice of massage therapy. The first MPA Task force meeting is being held today in Albany, New York.

Once an initial draft of the Model Practice Act is completed, it will be made available to the profession for comment so that all interested parties will have the opportunity to inform the development of the Model Practice Act before it is finalized. The ongoing status of this project will be updated on the FSMTB website: www.fsmtb.org.

The Federation's mission is to support its member boards in their work of public protection, improve communication between states and offer prospects for enhanced licensing reciprocity for the ultimate benefit of safe massage and bodywork practice protecting consumers.

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