“Our biggest concerns are what we call the 'scratchers,’ the unlicensed operations,” said Alan Pierce, bureau of general services supervisor for Public Health — Dayton & Montgomery County.
“Tattooing by definition is an invasive procedure where you are placing dyes or inks into the skin, the epidermis,” Pierce said. “Use of anything but sterile needles or sharps would obviously be a concern of transmitting blood-borne diseases.”
Tattoos now enjoy mainstream popularity, and licensed salons are thriving in the region, despite the stagnant local economy.
Montgomery County has 24 licensed operators, compared to seven when local regulation began in 1993. Numbers have remained steady in recent years in Greene (8), Clark (6) and Warren (3) counties, officials said.
“We’ve definitely felt the economy, but because we’ve been so creative with the marketing end of it, I think that’s enabled us to beat that,” said Brian Brenner, owner of Truth & Triumph Tattoo. Brenner has three Dayton-area studios, including one that opened last year on Kettering Boulevard in Moraine.
Nearly 40 percent of Americans ages 18 to 29 have a tattoo, according to a 2010 study by the Pew Research Center in Washington . About half of those with tattoos sport between two to five pieces of body art, and 18 percent have six or more, the study said.
Tattoo prices can range from $55 to $250 a session depending on their size, detail and location on the body. A “sleeve” that extends from the wrist to shoulder takes multiple sessions and costs from $3,000 to $5,000, Brenner said.
Tattoo and body piercing shops are primarily regulated under the Ohio Department of Health. Tattoo establishments must be approved, licensed and inspected annually by county health districts. Shops are subject to strict requirements related to sanitation, needle handling, record-keeping, age limitations and sterilization procedures.
“We are making sure there is no contamination from person to person,” said Carrie Yeager, Warren County environmental health programs coordinator.
Tattoo and piercing shops also are regulated because they generate infectious waste sharps, including disposable needles, syringes, scalpels and razors.
A Dayton Daily News review of the most recent tattoo inspection reports from Montgomery, Greene, Clark and Warren counties found most licensed area operations were in compliance, with only a few minor violations that did not require re-inspections.
Legitimate operators such as Liz Nelson, owner of Thin Lizzy’s tattoo studio in Springfield, welcome public health’s oversight. “They are making sure that they cover what needs to be covered for public safety,” she said.
Nelson’s salon uses single-use needles for piercings and tattoos. Required tests of heat sterilization devices for reusable equipment is monitored by the Ohio State University School of Dentistry, she said.
Public health officials said the most common complaints involve illegal tattooing operations and the tattooing of minors.
Ohio Revised Code prohibits tattooing or body piercing procedures on people younger than 18 without the written consent of a parent, guardian or custodian, who must be present when the procedure is performed.
Many area shops won’t tattoo children 16 and younger, even with parental consent. Infection and injury rates are statistically higher for minors, Nelson said.
One illegal operator in Mason was sued in civil court by a customer who got sick after a tattoo procedure, Yeager said.
The Greene County Combined Health District was forced to respond to “rampant” illegal tattooing two years ago at Wilberforce University, said Deborah Leopold, director of environmental health. Public health officials worked with the school to put out information via Facebook and Twitter about why students “should be going to licensed facilities, and not just sitting in their dorms and putting ink into their arms,” Leopold said.
Montgomery County typically sees two or three illegal operator complaints annually.
“We go out and make a personal visit and issue an order to cease operation with a threat of taking a repeat complaint to the prosecutor for resolution,” Pierce said. “That has been pretty effective.”
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