On August 2, Governor J. B. Pritzker signed into law Senate Bill 2660, amending message therapy misconduct laws.
The bill requires a massage therapist to practice only when a chaperone who is a licensed massage therapist or other health-care worker licensed by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (Department) is present if a massage therapist is charged with:
- An offense that may result in registering as a sex offender
- Sexual misconduct of a minor
- Battery or sexual misconduct against a patient
- Forcible felony
The massage therapist who is accused of the crime will receive an administrative order from the Department stating they must practice with a chaperone during all patient encounters until the outcome of the criminal proceedings.
The chaperone must provide a written notice to clients before treatment that explains why there is a chaperone present. The client notice must state in 14-point font: “The massage therapist is presumed innocent until proven guilty of the charges.” Clients must sign the notice as an acknowledgment they have read and understood the information.
Failure to comply with the administrative order, including the use of a chaperone or client notice, will result in temporary license suspension until the outcome of the criminal proceedings.
Effective immediately.