AMTA-OK Winter 2013 Newsletter

Save the Date! 2013 Chapter Meeting

June 1, 2013 Akdar Shriners, 2808 S. Sheridan Rd Tulsa, OK 74129 Featuring a selection of great educators, election of upcoming board positions, and general discussion regarding the newly introduced Massage Therapy Practice Act that regulates Massage Therapy throughout Oklahoma. For more details, continue reading…

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Oklahoma Chapter Board Members

Mary Elizabeth Le Blanc President Norman, OK (405) 924-2114 [email protected] Debbie Billington 1st Vice President / Membership Chair Tulsa, OK (918) 760-9406 [email protected] Tonya Sharp 2nd Vice President Moore, OK (405) 249-3844 [email protected] India Rose Carson 3rd Vice President Norman, OK (405) 223-8416 [email protected] Rocky Chen Treasurer Oklahoma City, OK (405) 702-8140 [email protected] Rodrick Neher Newsletter Chair / Alternate Delegate Oklahoma City, OK (405) 351-0577 [email protected] Scott G. Rayburn Delegate Oklahoma City, OK (405) 408-1564 [email protected]

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AMTA-OK NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

Volunteer Opportunities

The following positions are open for election:

• 1st Vice President – 2 year term • 3rd Vice President – 2 year term • Secretary – 1 year remaining

(open vacancy) • Treasurer – 2 year term • Delegate – 2 year term • Alternate(s) – 1 year term

To apply to run for any listed positions, candidates must: • Be a Professional or Professional Graduate AMTA Member in

good standing • Sign the Chapter Code of Conduct form.

Candidates can obtain the Code of Conduct form or ask any questions by contacting Mary Elizabeth at [email protected]

Times are changing for massage therapists in Oklahoma. With new legislation being proposed, our role is about to become even more important. We are in need of serious, dedicated volunteers that are passionate about their professions and are willing to share their time and energy to advance and promote our profession

The Oklahoma Chapter board has several positions open for election this year. Any volunteers from the chapter will be considered. Please submit your inquiries to Mary Elizabeth at [email protected].

Check out the Top 10 Reasons to volunteer!

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AMTA-OK NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

2013 Annual Chapter Meeting

Tulsa, OK Where: Akdar Shriners 2808 S. Sheridan Rd. Tulsa, OK 74129 When: June 1st, 2013 8am – 4pm Education: D’jango Sanders – Lumbar Techniques 6 CE Susan Salvo – Pharmacology 6 CE Registration Fee: TBA Accommodations: We are working with local hotels to receive a discount for our members.

Once we are able to lock in a deal, we will pass the info along. Details: Breakfast and Lunch will be provided. Members will chose which

education course they would like. During the lunch break, we will hold our annual meeting.

Meeting Agenda: We plan to discuss the new House and Senate Bills currently in legislation

that greatly affect our practice. HB1417 introduces the Massage Therapy Practice Act and we want to make sure all members are up to date on the changes being proposed. We will also hold a call for volunteers for a nominating committee and the election of volunteers for the next term for several positions on the Board. Lastly we will hold the discussion and voting for the annual budget as well as any new business.

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AMTA-OK NEWSLETTER WINTER 2013

Letter from the President

Mary Elizabeth Le Blanc, AMTA-OK President Dear Membership, On January 21st it was brought to my attention that a bill creating the Massage Therapy Practice Act is being introduced this Legislative session, HB 1417 by Hall. I met with Tonya 2nd VP at her home so we could review HB 1417. We penned e-mails together to send to Representative Hall and our respective Legislators. I sent e-mail to Joseph Roth, Government Relations Program Manager at National; I couldn’t find information on any new legislation for Oklahoma on National’s web site. On January 22nd Joseph called and informed me of SB 1019 by Sykes was also being introduced this session. He wanted copies of our e-mails sent to Representative Hall and our respective Legislators. Tonya was also contacted by Senator Sykes’ office for her contact information. Senator Sykes called her that evening to set up a meeting; he was responding to our first e-mail, I still hadn’t made the connection. I made sure Joseph knew this and he provided us with the advice on our approach and questions to ask.

On January 24th Tonya, India, Rocky all and myself met with Senator Sykes. Senator Sykes accommodated the two extra Board Members and gave us about an hour of his time. Senator Sykes was forthright with information on who approached him and also gave us the same information on Representative Hall; he indicated that Representative Hall is open to compromise. Senator Sykes is more comfortable with Massage Therapy being under the Medical Board rather than the Chiropractic Board; he also didn’t think any of our concerns with the bill were unreasonable. Joseph Roth and his team are working on reviewing both bills and making the required changes to make it a fair and equitable for all parties concerned, being consumers, the community and Massage Therapists in that order. I encourage everyone to contact their respective Legislators concerning this matter. The only thing I ask is that you do so respectfully and with an air of cooperation. If you do this with anger and demands we will not get an equitable Bill. It is time for us to unite as a Massage Therapy Community and approach this with respect and cooperation. I believe that if a Therapist has joined a professional organization that they want regulation. I am not foolish enough to think that all Therapists want it, but it needs to happen. I see this as a positive thing for the Massage Therapy Community. Respectively, Mary Elizabeth Le Blanc, AMTA-OK President

Thank You! Thank you all for taking the time to read this newsletter. We hope to see you all at the annual meeting this year!

Best Wishes!

AMTA-OK NEWSLETTER SUMMER 2012