As you may know the Democrats in the U.S. Senate are proposing a 5% tax on all cosmetic plastic surgery (The BoTax) as a way to raise money for the health care plan. This was brought up before, many months ago, but most politicians brushed it off. Some thoughts:
1. This tax disproportionately targets women, who make up 90% of plastic surgery patients.
2. It is not a tax on the rich, since plastic surgery patients are represented in every socioeconomic group. Arguably, the people who are earn less money will suffer more, since many of them take out loans or save for years to pay for their surgery.
3. They were initially considering a 10% tax on plastic surgery, but dropped it to 5% after aggressive lobbying.
4. A similar initiative in New Jersey has been considered a complete failure by many.
5. Is plastic surgery considered a ‘sin’, like cigarettes and alcohol, and therefore subject to taxing? It is far from it.
I think they should consider a tax on fast food (which harms the health of millions of Americans every day, including me) and attorney’s fees!
If you would like to send a message to your Senator to encourage them to vote against a 5% cosmetic plastic surgery tax, click here to be sent to the U.S. Senators webpages.
Thanks for reading.
Michigan-based Plastic Surgeon
Anthony Youn, M.D.
