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We Need Your Feedback, Massachusetts

Published: August 24, 2016

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Dear Massachusetts Members:

Yoga Alliance® recently became aware that the Massachusetts legislature is considering a bill, S.2461, which seeks to regulate “bodywork” or “bodywork therapy.” The bill has the laudable goals of ensuring that bodywork businesses are safe for their workers and their patrons, but, as described below, it could have an unintended impact on the yoga community.

Under the bill, “bodywork” is defined as the “use of touch, words or directed movement to deepen awareness of patterns of movement in the body... including... body-mind centering.” This definition is very broad and could be interpreted by policymakers to include yoga instruction and/or practice. It may also affect other activities related to yoga.

We are concerned that the bill could inadvertently subject yoga teachers and yoga businesses to licensure and other regulatory requirements. On your behalf, Yoga Alliance is gathering information related to this bill, and is positioned to take the necessary steps to advocate for our community.

To fully assess the potential impact of this proposed legislation, we need to hear from you!

Please let us know if you have heard about this bill and your interest in supporting grassroots advocacy efforts in Massachusetts via this survey.

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