2016 NEWSLETTER
North Carolina Board of
Massage & Bodywork
Therapy
Regulating the practice of massage and bodywork therapy and its educational
institutions, for the protection of the public.
Message from the Board Chair, Holly Foster, LMBT
So, 2016 draws to a close. This has been another year of effort and
achievements for the North Carolina Board of Massage and Bodywork
Therapy. The Board’s staff, as always, works tirelessly to improve the
processing of applications and respond to inquiries from applicants, licensees
and members of the general public. The appointed members of the board
could not do their jobs without the knowledge and experience of our stall'.
Many thanks to you all.
I would like to extend a personal welcome to Dr. Tim Taft, medical member
of the board. Dr Taft assumes the position from Dr Ed Preston who
completed his second term in June.
As is part of the role of public safety, the Board investigates complaints
it receives. Many of these include complaints of inappropriate activity or
providing massage or bodywork therapy by unlicensed individuals. Some
of the cases seemed to be 1 inked to human trafficking. The Board has sought
input from experts on methods it may use to help combat human trafficking
and preserve the public’s trust in the safety and efficacy of Massage and
Bodywork therapy in North Carolina.
The Board only has authority to regulate Licensed Massage and Bodywork
therapists. This year, the Board worked closely with investigators,
local police and sheritf’s offices and the Governor’s Human Trafficking
Commission to review the laws currently in place in North Carolina and
to advise them of what the Board regularly sees regarding illicit practices
under the guise of massage or massage and bodywork therapy.
Readers of this Newsletter may have seen news reports from Cumberland
County and Apex in 2016 about arrests for illicit activities under the guise
of massage. Both of these were the result of complaints filed by individuals
followed by investigations conducted by the Board. The raids were canned
out by local law enforcement with assistance from the Board’s investigator.
As 201 7 appears on the horizon, the North Carolina Board of Massage and
Bodywork Therapy will continue to fulfill its mandate to protect the health
and safely of the citizens of this State. The Board will continue its public
awareness campaign and its work with local law enforcement and the Human
Trafficking Commission. The Board will also continue to work with the
Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards to develop tools to fight fraud
in testing and license applications.
And, we need your help. Your license is a privilege and a responsibility.
Please endeavor to protect your license. You must post your original license
on the wall where you practice. Make sure you remove your expired licenses
from the wall. If you leave a business, take your license with you. If you
know of someone who is misusing a license, report this to the Board. The
Board cannot take action if it is not made aware.
As Chair of the North Carolina Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy.
I would like to extend my appreciation to our licensees for your support
of the Board. Best wishes to you, my fellow Board members, and Board
staff in 2017.
NCBMBT’s Top 10 List of Reminders for all L.MBT’s
1 . Please keep the Board informed of any changes to your mailing
address and email address so you will be sure to receive all
pertinent information, such as renewal reminders, newsletters, etc.
2. For all up-to-date information, as well as Board
contact information and/or questions regarding licensure,
please refer to the NCBMBT website at www.bmbt.org.
3. The Board meets every other month on the 13th floor ofthe Wells
Fargo Capital Center located at 1 50 Fayetteville Street Raleigh, NC
27601 . The current meeting schedule isposted on the website under
the ‘Board Meetings’ tab. All Board meetings are open to the public.
4. Please direct all requests, inquiries, and comments to
the Board office and not to individual Board members.
5. You may access the License Renewal tab on the Board’s website at
any time to print copies of your license. You can log in with yourname
and password that you created when you originally renewed online.
6. All online renewals end on December 31 at midnight. Any
renewals submitted past this date will need to be mailed and
include a letter stating whether or not you have been practicing
massage and bodywork therapy in NC since your license expired.
7. To keep your license current, all LMBTs must complete
24 hours of continuing education, including a minimum of 3
hours of ethics, through an approved provider. You may take a
maximum of 12 hours of distance learning and a maximum of
8 hours of business management, should you choose to do so.
8. Any LMBT, who has completed all of the required CEU’s
during the year of their renewal, may apply any additional CEU’s
taken after August 1 of that year to their next renewal period,
as long as they were not submitted for the prior renewal period.
9. At anytime, you may verify that a LMBT’s license is valid in
NC by accessing the Board's website and clicking on the License
Verification tab and searching by their last name or license number.
10. Licensees are required to notify the Board within 15
days if they know a person is practicing without a license, is
violating the Practice Act/Rules and Regulations, is charged
with certain criminal offenses, or is a defendent in a civil
lawsuit related to the practice of massage and bodywork therapy.
IN THIS ISSUE
Message from the Chair . 1
NCBMBT'sTop 10 List of Reminders . 1
New Board Members and Officers . 2
Board Requests Your Email Address . 2
Board Meeting Dates . 2
Administrative Director's Report . 2
Human Trafficking . 3
Disciplinary Actions . 4, 5 & 6
Board Website is your Online Source for Information . 7
