Massage Therapist: Helpful Organizations Related To Therapeutic Massage

A number of massage therapy and bodywork resources are available to guide you as you launch your new career path. The resources listed below represent the largest, most reputable professional organizations related to therapeutic massage. As you review each organization’s Web site, bookmark it so you can find it easily in the future.

American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA)
The American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) is a nonprofit professional association open to practicing massage therapists, students, and massage schools. The AMTA provides many benefits to its members, including a continuous promotion of the profession with both health-care practitioners and the public at large; the facilitation and push for fair and standard regulations and licensing for massage practitioners across all states; the opportunity to network at both local and national levels; and access to a variety of continuing education opportunities. AMTA is also an excellent source of liability insurance for the profession.
The AMTA has more than 56,000 members. AMTA’s resources include:
- Primary Web site: www.amtamassage.org/index.html
- State regulations: www.amtamassage.org/regulation/stateRegulations.html
- States with massage practice laws: www.amtamassage.org/about/lawstate.html

Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals (ABMP)
Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals (ABMP) is a national organization that exists to facilitate the professional advancement of individuals in the bodywork and massage professions. The ABMP provides its members with a number of benefits, including career assistance; business resources and materials; affordable, comprehensive professional liability insurance; and continuing education (CE) workshops and programs. The ABMP also advocates for a fair regulatory environment for the profession and keeps its members apprised of major issues and educational developments within the profession.
The ABMP is open to both current practitioners and students. The ABMP was founded in 1987 and is the largest massage membership organization in the United States, with more than 70,000 members. ABMP’s resources include:
- Primary Web site: www.abmp.com/home/
- Liability insurance for massage therapists: www.abmp.com/insurance/
- Massage & Bodywork magazine: http://massagebodywork.idigitaledition.com

Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation (COMTA)
The mission of the Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation (COMTA) is to accredit educational institutions and programs that provide instruction in massage therapy and bodywork. COMTA accreditation indicates that the school or program has undergone rigorous review by COMTA staff and been approved as a provider of high-quality education. COMTA’s purpose is to “establish and maintain the quality and integrity of the profession.”
COMTA was recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in 2002 as a specialized accrediting agency, which acknowledges COMTA’s expertise in ensuring the quality of therapeutic massage education provided by the organizations it accredits.
This recognition allows COMTA-accredited programs to access federal student aid funds. COMTA’s resources include:
- Primary Web site: www.comta.org
- All about accreditation: www.comta.org/students.php
- COMTA-accredited schools listing: www.comta.org/directory.php

Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB)
The Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB) is an organization founded in 2005 to “formally bring the [massage and bodywork] regulatory community together.” FSMTB’s membership is comprised of massage therapy regulatory boards from various states along with other organizations with a vested interest in the profession.
FSMTB’s goals are to facilitate the acceptance of a single, reliable licensing examination and to standardize licensing requirements for massage therapists and bodyworkers across the country. FSMTB’s stated mission is to “…support our member boards in their work to ensure that the practice of massage therapy is provided to the public in a safe and effective manner.”
FSMTB developed and administers the Massage and Bodywork Licensing Exam (MBLEx). FSMTB’s resources include:
- Primary Web site: www.fsmtb.org
- Massage and Bodywork Licensing Exam (MBLEx): www.fsmtb.org/licensing.html
- States accepting MBLEx for licensure: www.fsmtb.org/html/licensing/mblex.html

National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCAAM)
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) is the federal government’s leading agency for scientific research and information on health-care practices that are generally considered outside the bounds of conventional Western medicine. The NCCAM is a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). NCCAM’s resources include:
- Primary Web site: http://nccam.nih.gov
- Complementary and alternative medicine defined: http://nccam.nih.gov/health/whatiscam
- All about massage therapy: http://nccam.nih.gov/health/massage
- A-to-Z topic list: http://nccam.nih.gov/health/atoz.htm

National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB)
The National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1992. NCBTMB’s mission is to “define and advance the highest standards in the massage therapy and bodywork profession.” NCBTMB works to establish national certification as a recognized credentialing standard and to promote the massage and bodywork professions to the public as well as to public policy makers.
NCBTMB developed and administers the National Certification Examination for Therapeutic Massage (NCETM) and National Certification Examination for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCETMB) examinations. NCBTMB’s resources include:
- Primary Web site: www.ncbtmb.org
- State licensing requirements: www.ncbtmb.org/legislators.php
- NCBTMB-assigned schools: http://ncbtmb.org/cgi-bin/SchoolSearch.cgi