Georgia Massage Liability Insurance Guidelines

If you are a massage practitioner in the state of Georgia, you may be wondering whether you are required to have insurance for massage in order to get or retain your license. The question is important, but what you should be asking is not whether it’s required, but why you would leave yourself unprotected by not having massage liability insurance?

It takes a lot of time and effort to become a licensed massage therapist in Georgia. One must have 500 hours of training and clinical experience in a Georgia Board of Massage Therapy approved school. Once the training is complete, the applicant has to pass the National Certification Examination for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCETMB), or an equivalent exam that has been approved by the governor-appointed, 5-person board. These exams are only held twice a year.

When an applicant is finally licensed to practice, he or she is required to continue pursuing education and training through CEU hours. This requirement demands the completion of 25 hours of board-approved CEU hours biennially, as well, after this time period, the renewal of the massage therapist’s license. If the therapist fails to apply for license renewal before the end of those two years, or if they fail to fulfill the continuing education requirement, his or her license will be revoked.

The Georgia Board of Massage Therapy and Georgia state law makes it very clear that the practice of therapeutic massage is seen as a health care practice. As such, massage practitioners do not have to collect taxes for their services. However, they are held to a strict standard of care. Due to the classification as a health care service profession, any injury or perceived damage occurring during a session of therapy can be treated the same as an injury during treatment performed by a doctor, nurse, or dentist. Just as those health care professionals are open to lawsuits for malpractice or medical liability, so are massage therapists.

In the state of Georgia, massage insurance is not legally required. However, it is strongly recommended. There is no way to control all situations or the responses to them by a patient. Though LMTs take great care with their patients, not all clients or situations are the same, and injuries can and do occur. If you are a practicing, licensed therapist and one of your clients claims that you damaged them physically, there’s a high risk of being sued.

By practicing without Georgia massage insurance, you are leaving yourself open to the very real risk of losing everything, including your license, business, and even your home, if a lawsuit should be filed against you.

Insurance coverage for professional bodyworkers can be found at very affordable rates. It shouldn’t be looked at as a frivolous or unnecessary expense. You should think of it as your safety net from the very real risk of lawsuits that you could expose yourself to as a licensed massage therapist without it.

Georgia Massage Therapy Resources

The following are state resources, including some Georgia employment statistics, to help you determine if being a massage therapist is right for you:
Georgia massage employment statistics as of May, 2017:
Licensed Therapists: 5,313
Mean Hourly Wage: $17.52
Annual Mean Wage: $36,440
Source: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_ga.htm

Education Requirements
Required Education Hours: 500 hours
Written or Practical Exam: Written Exam
Exam Administered: MBLEx
CEUs Required: 24 hours every 2 years
Source: https://www.massagetherapylicense.org/state/georgia-massage-license.html

For additional information about massage therapy in Georgia, follow these links:
State massage information: http://sos.ga.gov/index.php/licensing/plb/33
State employment stats: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_ga.htm

Compare Georgia massage therapist employment statistics to other states:
https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes319011.htm