Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 30 - Professions and Occupations › Part 2501 - Massage Therapy, Board of › Chapter 4 - Licensing Requirements › Rule 30-2501-4.1 - General Requirements

Current through June 25, 2024
A. No person shall
				practice massage for compensation in the State of Mississippi except as
				provided by state statute and these regulations.
B. An applicant must be eighteen (18) years
				of age, or older, on the date the application is submitted.
C. An applicant must provide proof of high
				school graduate equivalency.
D. An
				applicant must be of legal status not only to receive a license, but also to
				work in the State of Mississippi with such license.
E. All required fees for initial licensure
				must be submitted by the applicant with a cashier's check or money order.
				Corporate checks are accepted from Mississippi licensed massage therapy schools
				in good standing.
F. Any and all
				requirements regarding good moral character and competency, as provided for in
				accepted codes of ethics shall be met. The burden of demonstrating that the
				applicant possesses the good moral character required for licensure shall rest
				with the applicant. Effective July 1, 2013, an applicant must have successfully
				been cleared for licensure through an investigation that shall consist of a
				determination as to good moral character and verification that the prospective
				licensee is not guilty of or in violation of any statutory ground for denial of
				licensure as set forth in Section
				73-67-27.
1. To assist the board in conducting its
				licensure investigation, all applicants shall undergo a fingerprint-based
				criminal history records check of the Mississippi central criminal database and
				the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history database. Each applicant
				shall submit a full set of the applicant's fingerprints in a form and manner
				prescribed by the board, which shall be forwarded to the Mississippi Department
				of Public Safety (department) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation
				Identification Division for this purpose.
2. Any and all state or national criminal
				history records information obtained by the board that is not already a matter
				of public record shall be deemed nonpublic and confidential information
				restricted to the exclusive use of the board, its members, officers,
				investigators, agents and attorneys in evaluating the applicant's eligibility
				or disqualification for licensure, and shall be exempt from the Mississippi
				Public Records Act of 1983. Except when introduced into evidence in a hearing
				before the board to determine licensure, no such information or records related
				thereto shall, except with the written consent of the applicant or by order of
				a court of competent jurisdiction, be released or otherwise disclosed by the
				board to any other person or agency.
3. The board shall provide to the department
				the fingerprints of the applicant, any additional information that may be
				required by the department, and a form signed by the applicant consenting to
				the check of the criminal records and to the use of the fingerprints and other
				identifying information required by the state or national
				repositories.
4. The board shall
				charge and collect from the applicant, in addition to all other applicable fees
				and costs, such amount as may be incurred by the board in requesting and
				obtaining state and national criminal history records information on the
				applicant.
5. "Good Moral
				Character" is a pattern of behavior conforming to the profession's ethical
				standards and behavior that indicates honesty and truthfulness, integrity,
				respect among the community for lawful behavior, respect for the rights of
				others, and obedience to the lawful directives of public offices or officials
				or persons charged with the enforcement of the law and showing an absence of
				moral turpitude. Persons with a conviction (misdemeanor or felony) related to
				prostitution, public indecency or sexual imposition have demonstrated an
				absence of good moral character and will not be granted a license to practice
				massage therapy.
a. A determination of good
				moral character shall be based on the absence of acts that reflect moral
				turpitude and that reflect all aspects of a person's character as exemplified
				by his or her behavior including, but not necessarily limited to, that the
				person:
i. Is guilty of fraud, deceit or
				misrepresentation in procuring or attempting to procure any license provided
				for under this Board;
ii. Attempted
				to use as his own the license of another;
iii. Allowed the use of his license by
				another;
iv. Is guilty of
				unprofessional or unethical conduct as defined by the code of ethics;
v. Has been adjudicated as mentally
				incompetent by regularly constituted authorities;
vi. Has received treatment for any emotional
				disturbances, mental disorder or insanity that would impair the person's
				ability to perform as a massage therapist;
vii. Has been convicted, found guilty, or
				entered a plea of nolo contendere of a crime, or has charges or disciplinary
				action pending that directly relates to the practice of massage therapy or to
				the ability to practice massage therapy,
viii. Is guilty of false, misleading or
				deceptive advertising, or is guilty of aiding or assisting in the advertising
				or practice of any unlicensed or unpermitted person in the practice of massage
				therapy;
ix. Is or has been a
				defendant in civil litigation in which the basis of the complaint was for
				negligence, malpractice, or lack of professional competence in the practice of
				massage therapy;
x. Has been
				disciplined by a regulatory authority in any jurisdiction related to the
				practice of massage or of any other credentialed profession (such disciplinary
				outcome includes, but is not limited to, license restrictions or conditions,
				probation, fine, or reprimand);
xi.
				Has had rights, credentials or one or more license(s) to practice massage
				therapy or any other credentialed profession revoked, suspended, denied, or
				required to be surrendered in any jurisdiction, territory or possession of the
				United States or another country. A certified copy of the record of the
				jurisdiction making such a revocation, suspension or denial shall be conclusive
				evidence thereof;
xii. Has
				voluntarily surrendered a license or credential to practice massage therapy or
				any other credentialed profession in connection with or to avoid a disciplinary
				action by a regulatory authority in any jurisdiction;
xiii. Has been convicted, found guilty, or
				entered a plea of nolo contendere of any felony, other than a violation of
				federal or state tax laws,
b. In determining a person's good moral
				character when there is evidence of the conduct described above, the Board will
				also consider the following factors:
i. The
				nature of the criminal offense(s) or conduct which gave rise to the
				disciplinary, civil, or administrative action.
ii. The age of the applicant at the time of
				the criminal conviction(s) or conduct which gave rise to the disciplinary,
				civil or administrative action.
iii. The number of criminal convictions or
				number of disciplinary, civil or administrative actions taken against the
				applicant.
iv. The nature and
				severity of the sentence or sanction imposed for each criminal conviction or
				disciplinary, civil or administrative action.
v. Whether the probation period given in a
				conviction has been completed and fully satisfied to include fines, court
				costs, and other conditions of probation.
vi. Whether restitution ordered by a court in
				a criminal conviction or civil judgment has been fully satisfied,
vii. Whether the record of conviction was
				overturned on appeal, the record was expunged, or significant evidence of
				rehabilitation is provided,
viii.
				The remoteness from the date of the criminal offense(s) or
				conduct.