Tattoo parlors get tougher rules

Friday, Dec. 15, 2000 | 11:12 a.m.

Tattoo and body-piercing artists will have to pay about $120 in health permit fees, classes and immunization shots before they apply any needles to clients in Southern Nevada.

The Clark County Health District Board on Thursday unanimously passed sweeping regulations that propose to make it safer and more sanitary for people to get tattoos and piercings, as well as make it safer for those who do that kind of work.

The health district has long had regulations requiring the sterilization of equipment. The action Thursday will, the board hopes, further prevent the possibility of the spread of deadly diseases such as hepatitis.

Local tattoo shop owners, however, were able to persuade the board not to require every worker to be trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, which would have required another $55 out of their pockets for a class from the American Red Cross.

Instead the board compromised by allowing tattoo businesses to have one person on duty trained in CPR. For a shop open 24 hours, that would mean at least three of its employees would have to be trained, as well as backups.

"There are a number of transient artists who come and go in three months, and that is a lot to ask (that all of them be trained in CPR)," said Mike Weinberg, who owns four local tattoo shops. "The rule should be that the shop owner or his representative (go through the training and then train the other workers)."

Lonnie Empey, an environmental health supervisor for the district, said, "the benefit to the community far outweighs the $55 cost."

Las Vegas Councilman Gary Reese, a health board member, who initially favored all tattoo artists being required to learn CPR, agreed to the compromise that requires workers get Red Cross training in preventing disease transmission, at a cost of $20 per employee.

Each artist or body piercer also would spend about $100 for the hepatitis A and B vaccinations and to attend educational classes when applying for or renewing health cards. Although those fees are required before they start to work, artists and piercers would have 30 days to get the shots and attend the classes, the health district says.

Also, as part of the reforms, tattoo shops will have to take further steps to determine that patrons are 18 or older and would have to keep permanent records on patrons.

"The No. 1 complaint (the health district receives) involves underaged kids getting tattoos or piercings without the consent of their parents," said Philippa Pointon, a health district senior environmental health specialist and registered nurse.

"Although I sympathize with the parents, I also sympathize with the shop owners on this one because computer technology is producing some good fake IDs. The majority (of incidents) involve fake IDs, and the shops have tried hard to make sure they (clients) are over 18."