Governor Beshear vetoed House Bill 8 (HB 8) on April 8, 2022. HB 8 would impose a 6% sales tax on a number of services and businesses, including massage services, except for those deemed “medically necessary”—a vague, undefined term.
While the veto appears to be a success for the massage community, the legislature will likely take the bill up again and override the veto, making HB 8 law. Now is the time to contact your legislators to make sure they clean up the bill. Find your senator here and your representative here.
The following is an example of language you can use to state your position when speaking with your legislators.
House Bill 8 does not work for massage therapy. The bill states medically necessary massage will be
exempt from the 6% sales tax, but a definition of what is considered “medically necessary” is absent
from the bill. Most importantly, HB 8 creates confusion in determining whether a service is medically
necessary by myself, clients, and most likely the government. HB 8 is vague regarding massage therapy
services. For these reasons, I ask that the legislature fix HB 8 to define the term “medically necessary.”
Advocate for yourself and all Kentucky massage therapists!