The mission of the California Massage Council is to protect the public by certifying massage professionals in California who meet the requirements of the. The new rule, a requirement to get vaccinated or undergo weekly tests, will take effect from September 3.This means that the rule would apply to massage therapists who work in hospitals or other businesses considered health care facilities, but probably not to massage therapists in private practice. Possible exemption criteria were not mentioned in this press release. Some gyms took advantage of the opportunity to vaccinate their employees.
But last Friday, state health officials revised those rules in the same update that reclassified cannabis industry workers and massage therapists, and now those guidelines no longer include outdoor recreation as health care. While some employers, including RWJBarnabus and Hackensack Meridian Health, require proof of vaccination from their workers, many more don't. But when they asked for their money back, the therapist refused, saying that “the packages were not refundable,” he said. Currently, seven states in California, New Jersey, Maine, Maryland, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington, plus the District of Columbia, now require healthcare workers to be fully vaccinated against coronavirus (COVID-19); of those, two entities, the District of Columbia and Washington State now include therapists from massage in your category of health workers who must be vaccinated to run a private practice.
At the close of this post, it was not yet known if that could affect massage therapists, or how it could do so. Among those industries are a couple of “alternative care” sectors, such as cannabis and massage therapy. He said that both parties would have benefited from having something in writing, although it is not a legal requirement. And the Veterans Affairs Administration said it would require COVID-19 vaccines for some of its workers, including doctors and nurses.
In addition, such requirements in both the District of Columbia and Washington State apply to all massage therapists, including those in private practice. Amy Yan, a representative of the California Department of Public Health, told the California Massage Therapy Council that massage therapists are considered alternative doctors. Employees in hospitals, nursing homes, dentists' and doctors' offices, and other healthcare facilities must meet the requirements by August. For more information, contact the state massage board or the Washington State Department of Health.
Murphy says workers at healthcare facilities, including hospitals, surgical centers, long-term care centers, substance abuse centers, and others, require a full vaccination test by Sept. 31. This order applies to workers in hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, hospice facilities, and many other healthcare settings, but does not specifically mention independent massage practices. In addition, massage therapists received clarification that California workers could be vaccinated as part of Phase 1A.