Massage therapist with ‘forged’ license is awarded a legitimate state license

The Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals administers and oversees many of Iowa's state licensing boards. (Photo courtesy of Getty Images; logo courtesy the State of Iowa)

An Iowa woman accused of practicing massage therapy in Iowa for more than two years without a license has been awarded a new license by the state.

The Iowa Massage Therapy Board recently charged Gina Rooks of southeast Iowa with practicing without a license; knowingly making deceptive or untrue representations in the practice of massage therapy or engaging in unethical conduct; and falsely representing herself as a licensed massage therapist.

According to the board, Rooks’ license, issued in May 2013, expired in May 2021. Two and half years later, in November 2023, the board opened an investigation into a complaint that Rooks had been practicing without a license at Revival Salon and Sanctuary in Mt. Pleasant.

The salon’s owner, Gina Burns, told the Iowa Capital Dispatch she had believed Rooks was licensed and had even posted in the salon a copy of the license Rooks had given her, which showed an expiration date of May 15, 2025.

The board alleged it has no record of issuing such a license to Rooks and that unusual markings surrounding the expiration date on the document suggest that it was forged.

The board recently agreed to settle the matter by awarding Rooks a new license and placing it on probation for one year, during which time Rooks will have to take a course in ethics and pay a civil penalty of $500.

The Iowa Capital Dispatch was unable to reach Rooks for comment.