House Bill 838

(As Sent to Governor)

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 73-7-16, 73-67-35 AND 75-60-11, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT CERTAIN PRIVATE BUSINESS AND VOCATIONAL SCHOOLS ARE AUTHORIZED TO SUBMIT EVIDENCE OF CURRENT NATIONAL ACCREDITATION FROM AN ACCREDITING AGENCY DESIGNATED BY THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION IN LIEU OF OTHER APPLICATION REQUESTS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 73-7-16, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

73-7-16. All schools of cosmetology or school owners shall have a school license and shall pay to the board the required license fee annually therefor. A grace period of sixty (60) days will be given in which to renew the license, and upon the expiration of the grace period of sixty (60) days, any applicant for the renewal of a school license will be required to pay a delinquent fee in addition to the renewal fee. The board is hereby authorized and empowered to promulgate necessary and reasonable rules and regulations for the issuance and renewal of school licenses. However, the board shall not refuse to issue or renew a school's license because of the number of schools already in that area of the state, and any rule promulgated by the board for that purpose shall be null and void.

Each application or filing made under this section shall include the social security number(s) of the applicant in accordance with Section 93-11-64, Mississippi Code of 1972.

Nationally accredited schools shall follow accreditation standards for hiring and training faculty and any state statute that contradicts those federal standards is not applicable to nationally accredited schools. All other schools must comply fully with the applicable state statutes.

Private business and vocational schools that have obtained national accreditation from an accrediting agency designated by the United States Department of Education may submit evidence of current accreditation in lieu of other application requests. Applications submitted on evidence of national accreditation must be approved or denied within thirty (30) days after receipt. If no action is taken within thirty (30) days, the application shall be deemed approved and a school license must be issued.

SECTION 2. Section 73-67-35, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

73-67-35. (1) To obtain a massage therapy license, an applicant must submit to the board the applicant's official and certified transcript(s) from the applicant's massage therapy school. The transcript must verify that the applicant has completed a board-approved training program of not less than six hundred (600) hours of supervised in-class massage therapy instruction, and at least one hundred (100) hours of student clinic, with a minimum grade requirement of "C" or better in every course of instruction, in the following subjects:

(a) Two hundred (200) hours in massage theory and practicum;

(b) Two hundred (200) hours in science of the human body;

(d) One hundred (100) hours in supervised student clinic.

(2) "Massage theory and practicum" must include a minimum of the following classroom hours in the specified subject areas:

(a) Ten (10) hours in legalities including Mississippi massage law and ethics;

(b) Twenty (20) hours in history, benefits, indications and contraindications;

(c) One hundred (100) hours in massage demonstration and supervised practice, which must include, but is not limited to, client evaluation, stroking, kneading, stretching, friction, percussion, vibration, range of motion, hand held tools and devices designated as t-bars or knobbies, and draping and turning; and

(d) The remaining seventy (70) hours may expand on any or all of the previous three (3) subject areas and/or be related to practical massage.

(3) "Science of the human body" must include a minimum of the following classroom hours in the specified subject areas:

(a) Twenty (20) hours in anatomy, including all body systems;

(b) Twenty (20) hours in physiology, including all body systems;

(d) Twenty (20) hours in neurology;

(e) Twenty (20) hours in pathology, including medical terminology; and

(f) The remaining one hundred (100) hours may expand on any or all of the previous six (6) subject areas and/or be related to the science of the human body.

(4) "Allied modalities" must include, but are not limited to, a minimum of the following classroom hours in the specified subject areas:

(a) Seven (7) hours in Eastern, European and Western theory/methods;

(b) Eight (8) hours in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and first aid;

(d) Twenty-five (25) hours in hydrotherapy and infrared heat;

(e) Twenty (20) hours in referral methods within the health care system; and

(f) The remaining one hundred thirty (130) hours may expand on any or all of the previous five (5) subject areas, including the Americans With Disabilities Act, and/or be devoted to any approach to massage therapy and wellness, such as trigger points, management, communication, safety, oriental or Eastern massage techniques and specialized populations. Schools with a temporary or probationary board status license must include a comprehensive review class of no less than sixteen (16) hours and three (3) hours to sit for and pass the board comprehensive exam.

(5) "Student clinic" must include at least fifty (50) practical hands-on one-hour massage therapy sessions to be evaluated on documents filed and kept on record at the school for a minimum of six (6) months. These evaluations are to be completed by the clients of the massage therapy sessions and shall include the client's name, address, reason for session, indications and contraindications, date and signature. Each completed session shall constitute two (2) hours of student clinic. The hands-on session must be supervised by an instructor, board licensed in the area being supervised.

(6) A massage therapy program shall not operate in the State of Mississippi unless it meets the minimum standards of curriculum for licensure as stated in this chapter. Massage schools and massage curriculums for licensure preparation must obtain a national accreditation from such agencies as the Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation or programs with the same or greater requirements. Existing massage schools will have five (5) years from July 1, 2001, to obtain that accreditation. New massage schools will have five (5) years from the opening of the massage school to show conformance with the accreditation requirements.

(7) No massage therapy program shall consist of more than forty (40) in-class clock hours per week.

(8) Hours credited through transfer credit shall not be recognized by the board unless the following transfer standards are met:

(a) The school shall be provided with a certified transcript from a school licensed or approved in that state;

(b) Courses for which credit is granted shall parallel in content and intensity to the course offered by the school;

(9) Private business and vocational schools that have obtained national accreditation from an accrediting agency designated by the United States Department of Education may submit evidence of current accreditation in lieu of other application requests. Applications submitted on evidence of national accreditation must be approved or denied within thirty (30) days after receipt. If no action is taken within thirty (30) days, the application shall be deemed approved and a massage therapy license must be issued.

SECTION 3. Section 75-60-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

75-60-11. (1) The Commission on Proprietary School and College Registration shall issue a certificate of registration to an applicant of good reputation, offering one or more courses of instruction upon determining that the applicant has the facilities, resources and faculty to provide students with the kind of instruction that it proposes to offer. A certificate of registration shall be granted or denied within sixty (60) days of the receipt of the application therefor by the commission. If the commission has not completed its determination with respect to the issuance of the certificate of registration within such sixty-day period, it shall issue a temporary certificate to the applicant, which certificate is sufficient to meet the requirements of Section 75-60-13 until such time as determination is made. Any certificate issued by the commission is valid only for the institution and courses for which it is issued and does not cover other schools or branches operated by the owner. A certificate of registration is valid for two (2) years unless earlier revoked for cause by the commission. The commission shall adopt rules and regulations for administration of the registration process. The commission may cause an investigation to be made into the correctness of the information submitted in any application for registration. If the commission believes that false, misleading or incomplete information has been submitted to it in connection with any application for registration, the commission shall conduct a hearing on the matter and may withhold a certificate of registration upon finding that the applicant has failed to meet the standards for such certificate or has submitted false, misleading or incomplete information to the commission. Application for a certificate of registration shall be made in writing to the commission on forms furnished by the commission. A certificate of registration is not transferable and shall be prominently displayed on the premises of an institution.

(2) Private business and vocational schools that have obtained national accreditation from an accrediting agency designated by the United States Department of Education may submit evidence of current accreditation in lieu of other application requests. Applications submitted on evidence of national accreditation must be approved or denied within thirty (30) days after receipt. If no action is taken within thirty (30) days, the application shall be deemed approved and a certificate of registration must be issued.

(3) The commission shall assign registration numbers to all schools registered with it. Schools shall display their registration numbers on all school publications and on all advertisements bearing the name of the school.

SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2011.