Youths under the age of 18 will no longer be able to toast themselves up in a tanning bed unless they have a medical prescription, thanks to changes under the Public Health Act.
Effective Oct. 15, 2012, businesses that fail to post the required sign informing the public of the ban, or who violate the ban by unlawfully permitting minors to use their indoor tanning equipment without a prescription, will face a fine of $345 for each offence.
The change has come about in response to a report released by an Indoor Tanning Working Group formed when a number of requests for a provincewide ban were received, including a resolution from UBCM.
The World Health Organization has found that indoor tanning before the age of 35 raises the risk of melanoma by 75 per cent. Melanoma is the most deadly type of skin cancer.
In Canada, the incidence rates of melanoma are rising every year. Overall, skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in Canada, and yet it is also one of the most preventable.