Reports over the weekend say the Senate has dropped the elective cosmetic tax from the 
healthcare reform bill, but strangely, they decided to trade one controversial tax for another; a 10% tax on indoor tanning is now being considered as another method of financing healthcare reform.
Of course just as representatives from the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery and other groups spoke out against the elective cosmetic tax, people from the Indoor Tanning Association (a colorful group I’m sure) are publicly opposing the tax. Their executive director says the tanning industry and the many small businesses that make it up, have been “thrown under the bus.”
Some are calling it a great idea, citing the health risks of tanning and its widespread appeal among young people. What’s your opinion? Is tanning such a risk that we should implement taxes to discourage it? What if small business owners are forced to close shop?
