Tanning Salon Owners: Are You Tracking with Howard County?
01/25/2010 17:38
November’s passage of the teen tan ban in Howard County, Md., marked what could be a monumental turning point for the industry – and not in a good way. The region’s ban only allows those under the age of 18 to tan if they have a written prescription from a doctor. The prescription must specify the patient’s medical condition, the number of visits allowed, and the time of exposure for each visit. I’m sure the area’s physicians, who likely don’t have the knowledge of appropriate exposure time for specific equipment and skin types, will be none-too-anxious to write those prescriptions. Beyond that, we can only begin to imagine the implications as a county health board succeeded in granting itself authority in a new realm already regulated by other governing bodies. As I understand it, Howard County’s salon owners were only given a short time to satisfy various conditions of the new regulations. Entire systems with documentation had to be put in place by each salon; and of course, owners also became responsible for new fees (renewable yearly) and the costs of implementing new policies and procedures. Some of the requirements include: •There must be at least one (1) person-in-charge for each ten (10) beds or fraction of ten (10) beds. Implication? If you’re used to running your 11- or 12-bed salon by yourself, you no longer get to work alone – regardless of how many of those beds are in use by customers at any given time. •Before every single tanning session, customers must receive and sign off on a written warning statement that includes information such as, “How much liability insurance the salon carries for injuries associated with tanning device usage such as skin and eye burns, alterations of immune system function, photo-aging, photo-induced medication reactions, and skin cancers.” Besides continually asking for customer signatures, salons are responsible for storing this documentation – and being able to produce it onsite for inspectors – for two years. •Mandatory warning signs are to be posted in each tanning room. They must be at least 11x17 inches with ½-inch lettering, displaying the message, “Use of a tanning device may cause skin cancer and burns to the skin and eyes. Protective eyewear is required.” Want to see their suggested sign? Click here. With this anti-tanning regulation being enacted – and quickly enforced – by a county health board, no region of the country can consider itself safe from similar activity in the future. Hang in there, Howard County. –Karen Related Articles: Baltimore County Votes Down Teen Tan Ban It’s Official: Howard County, Md., Bans Under-18 Tanning
User Comments !
What course of action if any might be successful or at least promising were we to take a stand and seek a reversal?
Who best to spearhead such an effort?
How much money would it cost?
"Hang in there" won't get it done. We should do it now before the sunscare corporations decide to get behind this and promote a Howard County campaign in every podunk county seat in the country. Thanks Looking Fit for the Wake UP call.
Posted by: jim | January 26 2010 09:31:03
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