Tattoo laws change in NM
By: Kelley Holmberg
Issue date: 12/2/08 Section: News
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Legislation passed in 2007 mandated that the Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists set up licensure requirements for body artists to ensure public health and proper hygiene, according to a press release from the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department.
New Mexico is now one of 32 states that regulate tattoo parlors, according to the American Red Cross Web site.
All body artists already practicing in New Mexico had until the November deadline to acquire a license - paying $100 and passing a test about the new regulations. Under the new laws, which took effect on Nov. 12, licenses are much more difficult to get.
"Regardless of their experience, anyone practicing after the deadline will be required to complete a 40-hour theory course, state board exam and provide proof of a 1,500-hour apprenticeship," Regulation and Licensing Superintendent Kelly O'Donnell said in the release.
Practicing body artists must also show proof of a CPR and a blood borne pathogen training that must be renewed annually.
Eastern New Mexico University student Alyssa de la Garza has five tattoos, four of which she got in New Mexico. De la Garza said she had no idea when she got her tattoos that New Mexico was an unregulated state.
Yet after finding out that there were no regulations at the time she got her tattoos, de la Garza said she has no concerns about the safety of her tattoos.
"… A lot of it is doing your research and knowing what's safe," de la Garza said. Because she chooses locations that feel safe to her, she hasn't worried about getting infections or about the spread of HIV.
She is, however, surprised that there were no regulations until now. "That's so invasive that you assume that it's regulated," de la Garza said, "and it should have been done long before now, probably."
Regulations and licensing issues for body art are handled at a state level, not a federal level because of other more pressing health concerns and a lack of sufficient evidence of safety concerns, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Web site.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention do warn that HIV can be spread through bad tattooing practices. For this reason, the American Red Cross says individuals who have received a tattoo within the last 12 months are ineligible to donate blood if they got the tattoo in a state that does not regulate tattoo facilities.
The FDA also warns there are risks involved in getting a tattoo, even when regulations are present. The risks commonly include infections or allergic reactions. It is also possible to develop granulomas around tattoos because the body perceives the pigmentation to be a foreign object.
The most common problem associated with tattoos is dissatisfaction. Problems can also result from the tattoo removal process, which the FDA site says is painful, expensive, and often results in scarring.