The Massage Therapy Defense Fund for the BLMTB

Our goal is $125,000 for 2021 & 2022

TLDR (Summary)

Massage therapy is a healthcare profession in most states including Montana… but local and state governments are not treating the profession that way. Our goal is to change all that in our corner of the world. And we’re asking you to contribute – and asking your clients to contribute too. Small dollar contributions can add up very quickly – and so do large dollar donations. We’re asking you to give what you can to make it happen. We’ll outline what we’re going to do with your money below.

It’s time that we take our seat at the table…. because If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu (Anonymous)… meaning that others will dictate what happens to our profession. It’s time to ensure that we have a voice in how our profession is treated by lawmakers.

Please consider a contribution today! Suggested Donation: The cost of a massage - more if you can, less if you can't. We appreciate any amount you can give. Thank you!!!

Deb Kimmet, BLMTB Executive Director 

The Longer version

The Problem

City and state governments enact laws that treat the massage therapy profession as adult entertainment – all in the name of trying to stop human trafficking and prostitution. Instead of ridding our profession of the problem, these laws create a safe haven for criminals within our profession. And instead of separating us from criminal sexual activities, they associate massage therapy WITH these activities. We have a whole lot more to say about this, but the long and short of it: These laws put massage therapists in greater danger and they don’t work. Even prominent anti-trafficking experts say so. There are better solutions.

Unfortunately, supporters of these laws have deeper pockets and a network of radicalized activists on their side – after all, who doesn’t want to help the victims of human trafficking? We want to help too, but we believe that the response to criminal activity hijacking our profession should be measured and should not destroy an entire profession in the process. And we believe that this is what these laws do. They diminish our standing as a healthcare profession. They put practitioners in danger from sex buyers looking for sex. We have first hand experience with that one: Lewd calls, pictures, and sex buyers showing up at businesses skyrocketed when the Billings, MT ordinance was announced. And these laws typically do nothing to address the problem. Our research shows that there are better solutions.

But this type of harmful regulation is not the only issue facing our profession. Massage therapy is not respected as a healthcare profession. For example, during the pandemic massage therapy was treated as a personal service industry, not the same as other non-emergent healthcare professions that were allowed to resume services for pain reduction and injury recovery. This discriminatory treatment also led to restricted vaccine access. And on and on.

What We Propose

And yes, we do need to up our game. For example, one way we can contribute to fight human trafficking is by cracking down on the unlicensed practice of massage, by ensuring that those who do get licensed in Montana have not been convicted of sexual crimes elsewhere, and holding business owners and managers accountable by criminalizing their use of unlicensed people to provide massage therapy. We can even advocate for laws that treat us equitably concerning insurance reimbursement and laws that ensure that massage therapy businesses are not restricted any more or less than the offices of other healthcare practitioners. And that’s just the start.

The Solution

All of these proposals mean that state legislation and/or lawsuits are necessary. And legal representation is needed when more cities try to move forward with draconian proposals – we’ve been told that Billings is just the start. Bozeman and Missoula are next, along with statewide laws.

Lawsuits and legislation take money – and lots of it. If we are going to be taken seriously as a profession, we’re going to have to do something. One lobbyist during a legislative session can cost $15,000 - $20,000. Trying to proactively pass legislation to do some of the things we’ve outlined above takes time, energy, and even more money than that. Legal representation at city council meetings can run $5,000 or more. Challenging laws that we believe trample all over our constitutional rights and force us to reveal protected client information can cost a minimum of $75,000 - $100,000.

It sounds like a lot of money, but it’s not if we all give a little bit. The cost of a massage - More if you can and less if you can’t. Every year. We project that the initial outlay will be a minimum of $125,000 for the first two years, then we hope it will go down to $15,000 – 20,000 per year, but that depends whether we have to bring more lawsuits. We don’t just defend our rights once. It needs to be done on a yearly basis. From here on out. Other healthcare professions do it to defend their rights. We need to join them to advocate for laws that treat us fairly and equitably.

Please give. Our – Your – profession depends upon it.

The finances will be managed by the Business League for Massage Therapy & Bodywork (BLMTB).

The BLMTB is a not-for-profit 501(c)6 business association. We’ve been working on these issues for years for free – not one penny has been used to reimburse our advocates. And we’ve reached the limit of what we can do on a volunteer basis. We need professional help. And that’s why we’re asking.

Any contributions made are not tax deductible.

This will be an on-going fundraiser.

Thank you so much for your support!