Regulatory Overview

Overview of the Regulatory Process

The Massage and Bodywork Therapy Practice Act was enacted by the North Carolina General Assembly and signed into law on November 8, 1998 by Governor James B. Hunt, Jr. This established the legal requirement for licensure of practitioners, created the Board, and set forth the essential provisions needed to carry out this new process. This Practice Act is now part of the North Carolina General Statutes, which contain all State laws.

The seven-member Board of Massage & Bodywork Therapy (Board) began meeting monthly in April 1999, and has been handling the fundamental tasks of setting up a new occupational licensing agency. One of the Board's primary jobs has been to develop the Rules, which are intended to provide details of the regulatory structure. The scope of these Rules is predetermined by the specific language of the Practice Act, since the Board may not exceed the authority granted it by the General Assembly.

Rule making is tightly defined by law -- please refer to the Board document, Information on the Rule Making Process, for an outline of the procedural steps which all governmental agencies in North Carolina must follow in adopting new rules.

The Rules are the product of extensive work performed by Charles Wilkins, Legal Counsel to the Board, in cooperation with members of the Board. These provisions have been thoroughly “massaged” and revised in open discussion at Board meetings, and are drafted to meet the legal mandate given to the Board by the General Assembly, which is: To ensure minimum standards of competency, and to protect the public health, safety and welfare.

The Board has endeavored to balance this directive with the needs of:

Creating a set of standards which all licensees can be reasonably expected to uphold;
Defining behaviors and requirements in terms which are verifiable, understandable and legally defensible; and
Establishing policies and procedures which are efficient to administer on a day-to-day basis by the Board office.

In drafting these Rules, the Board has also taken into account the diverse nature of the practitioner community, and the wide range of education, credentials, and professional experience which exist among massage and bodywork therapists across North Carolina.

In addition to the Rules, the Board has also developed a set of official Guidelines, which serve as a “policy manual.” Most of these guidelines deal specifically with individual rules, and address such details as: the form of educational documentation required with an application; which modalities will be exempted from licensure; or, the criteria for an approved continuing education provider. A copy of the Guidelines is available from the Board office upon request.

Once the Board issues licenses to massage and bodywork therapists, the Board will be responsible for ensuring that licensees uphold their legal requirements. The Board's disciplinary procedure (defined in Rules Section .0900) allows the Board to investigate and deal with potential violations of the statutes and rules.