Feel the Burn! Here Comes the Tanning Tax

A proposed tanning tax could add 10 percent to your body bill

Any Miamian worth their weight in sand knows it costs to get that perfect tan.

But that cost usually deals with finding that perfect spot on the beach or pool deck, making sure the sun strikes your body at the right angle and having the right amount of awareness to know when to turn over before your buns are cooked well done.

Well those tan-challenged politicians in D.C. have a different take on the cost to achieve the perfect skin tone, and they are adding 10 percent to it.

A new healthcare reform clause dubbed the tanning tax will increase the cost of tanning the unnatural way - in a salon. The proposed surcharge replaces the Bo-tax, which targeted cosmetic surgeons who handled plastic surgeries deemed unnecessary.

Beauty is truly under fire in Washington.

"It's going to be the strong that will survive," said Jack Hays, a Miami tanning salon owner. "I think it's a bit unfair the way things have happened."

No place will feel the pinch of the tanning tax than in South Florida, where tanning salons are as easy to find as 24-hour convenience stores.

Many tanning professionals and salon owners have said they will have no choice to pass on the expense of the tax to the tanner.

Now that's what we call a real burn.

You'd think that the tanning tax would be easily avoidable with that big flaming ball in the sky called the sun usually hovering over the Magic City. But not everyone wants to soak in the real sun's rays so those psychedelic blue UV lights are usually the preferred alternative.

Besides, the sun doesn't come with a timer or temperature gauge.

There's also that spray on tan, but it's hard to get in VIP at the club looking like you're related to an Oompa Loompa.

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