Is regulation by massage law a malregulation of reflexology practice?
Example of one
state's criteria for licensing and regulation Malregulation of Reflexology
? "In determining
whether to enact legislation to create a new board or
commission to provide for licensure or regulation of a
profession or occupation that is currently not subject to
state licensure or regulation, the legislature shall
consider whether the following criteria are
met: "A. unregulated
practice of the profession or occupation will clearly harm
or endanger the health, safety or welfare of the public, and
the potential for harm is easily recognizable and not
remote The typical state
massage law addresses safety issues of massage, a nude
service, and imposes the mechanisms specific to those issues
on reflexology practitioners. Reflexology is a non-nude
service. The laws create no mechanism to address safety
issues inherent to reflexology practice &emdash; such as
practicing medicine without a license. "B. regulation of the
profession or occupation does not impose significant new
economic hardship on the public, significantly diminish the
supply of qualified practitioners or otherwise create
barriers to service that are not consistent with the public
welfare or interest In areas where such
laws have been in effect over time, the cost of services has
increased and the quality of services has decreased as
experienced practitioners are forced out of business. The
laws create state-mandated monopolies over reflexology
practice to practitioners who are not required to have any
qualifications to practice. The supply of qualified
practitioners has been nearly eliminated in New York City by
the state law. A barrier is created
for the individual who seeks to exercise his or her first
amendment right to provide or have provided the health
belief service of choice. Why is the state mandating that a
belief system be professionally practiced only by those who
are licensed for another profession? A barrier is erected
for the experienced service provide who cannot afford the
time or money to receive education in another profession to
continue his or her established business. Higher regulatory
fees are imposed on the reflexologist commiserate to the
regulatory task of overseeing a nude bodywork service.
(Chicago reflexologists pay the city massage licensing fee
of $600 a year. Illinois nurses pay $10 a year for state
licensing.) "C. existing
protections available to the consumer are insufficient, no
alternatives to regulation will adequately protect the
public and this licensure or regulation will provide that
protection and mitigate the problems A
full
and fair disclosure system
of
business regulation would more adequately protect the public
and mitigate the problems of reflexology as a non-nude
profession. The existing massage law imposed on reflexology
practitioners creates more safety to the public problems
than it solves. The existing laws do not exist the issue of
clearly defining separate bodywork practices to ensure that
fair practices acts are not violated and that the consumer
receives the services he or she contracts
for. "D. functions and
tasks of the occupation or profession are clearly defined
and the occupation or profession is clearly distinguishable
from others already licensed or regulated The functions and
tasks of a reflexologist and massage therapist are clearly
defined in textbooks, education, and professional
associations. "E. the occupation or
profession requires possession of knowledge, skills,
abilities that are both teachable and testable and the
practitioners operate independently and make decisions of
consequence A separate
reflexology body of knowledge is detailed in twenty books
and by two national organizations. The states have failed to
prove that there is an overwhelming need to regulate
reflexology and they have failed to show that it has
adequately regulated reflexology. The states are
certifying the competency of bodywork professionals without
following the educational standards established for bodywork
professions: completion of a course of study in the
professed field of study in a curriculum specific to the
profession or from a credentialed school. "F. the public needs
and can reasonably be expected to benefit from the assurance
from the state of initial and continuing professional
competence; and The laws include no
educational requirements of reflexology providers. Normally,
"legislatively defined scopes of practice ensure that
practitioners confine their interventions to those they are
trained to offer." Is the public put at risk by the
state-mandated possibility of a substandard professional
reflexology service provider? Is the state legally liable
for actions resulting from the certification of competency
of untrained individuals to practice a
profession? "G. the public cannot
be effectively protected by other means in a more
cost-effective manner." A
full
and fair disclosure
system
would provide the information necessary for the consumer to
make an informed decision in the purchase of services. A
notice posted in the workplace would notify the consumer of
public safety issues and means to comment on
services.
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