News: Congress Passes the NOPAIN Act

AMTA is excited to share that Congress passed the NOPAIN Act in late December. The NOPAIN Act is a huge win for our massage therapy community, which aims to make a significant impact in helping prevent opioid addiction and saving lives throughout the country.

The passage of the Non-Opioids Prevent Addiction in the Nation Act (NOPAIN Act) is intended to increase patient and provider access to non-opioid approaches to pain management for those enrolled in Medicare and help stem the opioid epidemic across the nation. Supporting this legislation is part of AMTA's ongoing advocacy efforts at the federal and state levels to enact responsible policies that expand access to massage therapy.

The NOPAIN Act also requires a report to Congress on limitations and barriers to access in Medicare coverage for services supported by the HHS Pain Management Task Force, including massage therapy. For more information, view a one-pager on the NOPAIN Act or see the full bill.

“I’m pleased to see Congress pass this important legislation with the hope that it will make an impact as we work to increase access to massage therapy for pain,” said Michaele Colizza, AMTA National President. “Years of research support massage therapy as an important part of an integrative approach to care for chronic and acute pain.”

AMTA is proud to be part of the Voices for Non-Opioid Choices coalition and its efforts to help pass the NOPAIN Act. We want to thank our massage community for your advocacy and support in helping pass this crucial legislation, as we work to increase access to massage therapy for pain and broaden opportunities for massage therapists. Together, our collective voices made all of the difference!

To learn more about AMTA’s efforts on massage therapy for pain relief, you can explore these resources on our website. We remain dedicated to this important issue, as we continue to invest in research, advocacy, and promoting the benefits of massage for pain.

NOPAIN Act FAQs

The NOPAIN Act includes AMTA promoted and endorsed language that mandates that the US Department of Health and Human Services issue a report to Congress on limitations, gaps and barriers to access as well as deficits in coverage for services that were included in the 2019 Pain Management Task Force report.
AMTA staff and volunteers worked closely with Congress, HHS and other stakeholders to ensure that massage therapy was included in the HHS Pain Task Force, this keeps massage therapy at the forefront of our advocacy efforts, as we keep pushing Congress to tear down barriers to massage therapy services.
NOPAIN will help us keep massage therapy and the HHS Pain Task Force in the minds of policymakers. Without our combined efforts, the HHS Pain Task Force report findings would be unattended to, with no further action taken by Congress.

The NOPAIN Act is the first major federal bill to be enacted that helps expand provider access to FDA approved non-opioid pain management in outpatient surgical settings. By working as part of a multi-faceted coalition on this issue, we have helped elevate massage therapy as an important voice in the community to address opioid abuse and misuse for issues related to pain.

AMTA staff and volunteers worked in Washington DC (and at the state level) with sponsors and other key stakeholders to promote the bill. Since 2020, we estimate that over 50,000 massage therapists (and supporters of massage therapy) across the country have engaged in grassroots outreach to their Congressional House and Senate Members, helping us elevate the massage therapy message.

Just to be clear, the NOPAIN Act does not mandate any sort of coverage or reimbursement. AMTA will continue to develop and promote this effort, with support from components of the NOPAIN Act, along with new and emerging research and other successes we’ve had over the years.

Massage for Pain Relief

Learn how massage therapy can be effective in the management of acute and chronic pain.

Massage as an Alternative to Opioids

Explore the latest science on massage therapy as a nonpharmacological approach for pain relief.