This government agency regulates massage therapists. It grants licenses to applicants who graduate from state-approved schools and pass a required exam. The board also establishes and enforces license renewal and continuing education requirements.
Another duty is to ensure that students at public and private postsecondary schools pass background checks and receive at least C grades in basic coursework. The board mandates that students may practice on the public only under supervision. School faculty must meet criteria concerning training and experience.
The board “reviews and acts on issues of discipline, licensure, rules and regulations, legislation, and other business.” State code empowers these officials to revoke, suspend, deny, and reinstate licenses.
The governor, with the “advice and consent” of the state Senate, appoints eight people to the board. There are seven voting members, six of whom must be licensed massage therapists. The non-voting member represents the public.
Minimum Education Requirements for Massage Therapy Programs in Missouri
To become a massage therapist in Missouri, the first requirement is to either graduate from high school or earn a GED. Taking extra health and science classes in high school may help win admission to some postsecondary institutions.
A prospective practitioner must graduate from a school with an MT curriculum that meets state requirements. The Missouri Board of Therapeutic Massage recognizes schools that have been certified by the Coordinating Board of Higher Education, approved by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, or accredited as an institution of higher learning by a regional accrediting agency.
The board mandates that a program provide at least 500 clock hours of instruction. This is to include 100 hours of anatomy and physiology courses, 300 hours of massage theory practice, 50 hours of training in ancillary therapies, and 50 hours of classes in subjects such as ethics, business practice, hygiene, and state law.
Graduates are eligible to apply for state licensure, but they must pass the Massage & Bodywork Licensing Examination (MBLEx). The Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards provides the exam, which Pearson VUE testing centers administer on computers.
Massage therapists in Missouri are required to renew their licenses every other year, which entails receiving 12 hours of continuing education.