Lieu introduces Cancer Prevention Bill

 (Sacramento, CA) – Late yesterday Assembly Member Ted Lieu, (D-Torrance), introduced AB 105, which will help prevent skin cancer by reducing the amount of exposure to indoor tanning beds and establishing greater disclosure regarding the harmful effects of indoor tanning. 

“Over a million individuals in the U.S. visit tanning salons daily, many of whom are lured in by false and misleading information,” said Lieu. “It is our responsibility as lawmakers to ensure that these salons are operating in a safe and ethical manner.” If passed, AB 105 will be the strongest bill on this subject in the nation.

The World Health Organization and the American Dermatological Association recommended that no person under the age of 18 use a tanning bed because of the associated increased risk for skin cancer.

Last year the Charlie Guild Melanoma Foundation reported that melanoma, caused by sunburns and UV light damage to the skin, has become one of the most common cancers among men and women between the ages of 20 and 29, and malignant melanoma is the leading cancer-causing death among women aged 25 to 29.

“Indoor tanning during youth prematurely ages the skin and increases the risk of skin cancer,” said Dermatologist Craig A. Kraffert, M.D., of the California Society for Dermatology. “Unchecked indoor tanning during youth has the potential to make America's epidemic skin cancer statistics even worse. For these reasons, CalDerm supports thoughtful, rational disease prevention policy such as that in the measure proposed by Assemblymember Lieu."

AB 105 will ban persons under the age of 16 from accessing tanning facilities, require in-person parental consent for teenagers aged 16 to 18 prior to initial use, and prohibit tanning facilities from advertising fraudulent or misleading claims stating that indoor tanning has any sort of health benefit.

“The fact is that indoor tanning not only irrevocably damages the skin but can also cause deadly skin cancer, “said Lieu.  ”The purpose of this bill is to protect our youth from being misled and making decisions that could ultimately cause permanent health damage.”