MARYLAND Bill Creates Body Altering Aesthetics Advisory Committee
Bill Name: House Bill 1327 (HB 1327)
Primary Sponsor: Representative Ashanti Martinez
Status: 04/08/2024: Senate Adjourned
AmSpa’s Take: While it is common for advisory committees to be established to study certain issues, this topic is unusual and appears driven by one private organization.
Outlook: This bill has passed the House and is now in the Senate.
Analysis: HB 1327 would create a Body Altering Aesthetics Advisory Committee with the goal of creating an interim report by Dec. 1, 2024, with a final report by Dec 1, 2025. The topics the committee will study include:
- Whether current health occupation licensing and certification adequately regulates the body-altering aesthetics industry, by:
- Providing flexibility in the scope of practice,
- Providing oversight and policy guidelines, and
- Protecting the public.
- Whether the state should:
- Require national certification to participate in the body-altering aesthetic industry; and
- Establish a regulatory entity to certify professionals.
HB 1327 defines the body-altering aesthetic industry to be the “…subset of the health care industry that combines the practice of various health occupations, including massage therapy, nursing, and medicine, with the aesthetic aspirations of patients, and uses a variety of medical techniques, including biomechanics, bioengineering, and biohacking.”
HB 1327 goes on to specify who will make up the 12-member advisory committee. Five positions are from state departments—one member each from the secretary of state, the massage therapy board, the nursing board, the medical board and the physical therapy board. Seven positions are appointed by the secretary of state and include one massage therapist with experience in “lymphatic drainage massage,” one nurse with experience in post-surgical care, one physician with experience in cosmetic and reconstructive procedures, one consumer, and three members from the “Convalescent Synergistic Lymphatic Therapy Organization.”
According to its website, the Convalescent Synergistic Lymphatic Therapy Organization was founded in 2020 by the American Council of the Body Altering Aesthetics Industry (ACBAA).
HB 1327 is a bit of an unusual bill. While it isn’t uncommon to form committees to research or explore areas, the definitions and number of members from one organization make it unclear what the goal is. Based on the number of members related to massage and post-surgical care, it would seem that they want to study massage, lymphatic drainage and physical therapy. However, based on the definitions used, such as “bio hacking,” and based on the ACBAA’s website, it appears that “body-altering aesthetics” includes all types of plastic surgery, all types of cosmetic medical procedures and many types of post-surgical recovery. So, it seems odd to have such a broad mandate and have such a concentrated membership of 25% from a single organization and 50% being related to massage or physical therapy only.
If you would like additional information, to read the language of this bill or to contact the sponsors or committee, you can find the information you need through this link: HB 1327.