As a licensed massage therapist for the past six years in Beckley, Eric Williams is fearful of the damage Senate Bill 196 could cause the state.
Williams began his career as a nursing assistant, then worked his way up to LPN. But he grew tired of the focus on prescription medications in the medical field, especially after he was diagnosed with lupus. Williams turned his attention to medical massage.
After personally experiencing the benefits of massage, Williams decided he wanted to learn the practice himself.
He enrolled at Mountain State School of Massage in Charleston — a one and a half year program where he studied anatomy, physiology and kinesiology, all before learning massage techniques.
"If you don’t know enough pathology to treat people, you could end up hurting someone," Williams said.
Massage therapists cannot diagnose, but they are trained to recognize symptoms, such as blood clots and broken bones, that need referral to other medical professionals.
After completing the program, Williams passed both an optional national board exam and the required state level exam for certification with the West Virginia Massage Therapy Licensure Board, which is now on the chopping block under SB 196.
The bill was introduced Feb. 8 and is still pending before the Senate Committee on Government Organization. Senator Craig Blair, R-Berkeley, is the lead sponsor of the bill and chairs the committee on government organization.
Under the bill, the board would be eliminated by July 1, 2018.
Terminating the licensure board would impact massage therapists, as well as their patients.
"I see a lot of teachers, cops, road workers who have PEIA, which requires a state-licensed massage therapist to perform medical massage or they will not reimburse... Many patients rely on insurance to pay for their massages. Not everyone can afford $45 for 30 minutes."
Some insurance companies will accept a national certification, but others specifically require state certifications for billing.
"(Massage therapists) without a national certification will get hit the hardest," Williams said. "But if PEIA doesn't honor the national certification, it will hit all of us."
Williams fears if patients don't have access to medical massage, they may focus on narcotics to ease their chronic pain.
"A lot of us see a lot of people with chronic pain, and a lot of them could be facing addiction... My patients have said when they miss a session or when I go on vacation, that's when they're popping pills."
A number of medical organizations have touted the benefits of alternative therapies, such as yoga, acupuncture and massage, as ways to alleviate pain. Williams fears the pill epidemic will worsen if this legislation passes.
"We have several people who rely on alternative medicine so they don't have to go up the food chain for narcotics."
If the bill is passed, Williams said many massage therapists will be forced to leave the state to continue their practice.
Ultimately, he sees the bill as the state's "backdoor" way of cutting a PEIA benefit. But in West Virginia, the No. 1 state in the nation for overdose deaths, he said alternative medicines must be supported.
— Email: [email protected] and follow on Twitter @WendyHoldren
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