By SAMANTHA CRITCHELL
Associated Press Writer
(AP) NEW YORK
The rules governing cosmetic tattoos vary from state to state.
Tattoo artists in Tennessee are regulated by the state Department of Health. To be licensed, they are required to take a three-hour course on safety precautions and waste disposal, and perform a yearlong apprenticeship. Those who do permanent makeup under the direction of a physician as part of reconstructive surgery are regulated through the board that licenses the state's physicians.
Tattooing eyebrows and eyelids is prohibited in Georgia, but other facial tattoos are permitted outside of a one-inch area surrounding the eye socket. In New York, the only statewide prohibition is the permanent dyeing of eyelash or eyebrow hair. Otherwise, cosmetic tattooing, or micropigmentation, is ruled by local laws.
Illinois, Wyoming and New Mexico do not regulate tattoo artists, although those outside the medical field in Illinois are barred from tattooing anyone under age 21.
Under California law, tattoo and permanent body makeup shops must obtain business licenses in their local jurisdictions. State law also requires that the recipient be 18 or have the permission of a parent or legal guardian.
California's 58 counties have authority to adopt their own guidelines regarding permanent makeup and tattoos, but the state Department of Health Services is aware of only one, Siskiyou, a rural area in northern California, that has done so.
At the urging of legitimate tattoo shop owners concerned about "underground" shops, the state Health Department is adopting additional guidelines.
Tattoo removal in California can be performed by a physician, or by a registered nurse or physician's assistant under the supervision of a medical doctor, according to Dr. Brian Kinney, a spokesman for the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.
"At first blush, removal doesn't sound complicated but it can be. We used to either cut out (the color) or do a skin graft," says Kinney, a board-certified plastic surgeon based in Los Angeles. "Now a laser removes 80 or 90 percent of a tattoo. But the skin where it was removed ends up lighter. A laser isn't an eraser."
Kinney brings permanent makeup technicians into his office after he's satisfied that they approach the procedure in a clinical way. He regards it as more than a routine beauty treatment because the results are long-lasting, even though the health risks are minimal compared to plastic surgery.
"Ten to 15 years from now, fashions change. Plastic surgery and tattoos will feel those effects," he says.
The Society of Permanent Makeup Professionals requires members to adhere to a code of ethics that includes pledges to follow all local, state and federal guidelines, and all Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Any training program at the beginner level must be at least 40 hours long.
Dr. Thea Davies, a Dallas internist and permanent-makeup client, recommends asking if needles are single-use and how other equipment is cleaned. Utraviolet radiation or heat is the best form of cleaning, Davies says, but application of permanent cosmetics cannot be qualified as a sterile procedure because the dye isn't sterile.
