New South Wales Health Minister Brad Hazzard, has today announced plans to tackle the state’s body modification industry. Though, the investigation was sparked after two fatal incidents Hazzard has taken a rather bizarre approach to his campaign.
Hazzard said people who undergo body modification procedures like skin implants have “some pretty major issues going on in their heads”.
Body modification procedures include the split tongue, eyeball tattoos, ear-pointing, various skin implants, and scarification. These procedures, though a majority illegal, are commonly sought out at underground clinics.
Hazzard, currently in talks with the Ministry for Health, is determined to tackle NSW’s body modification industry after a woman died while receiving breast enhancements at a cosmetic clinic in Sydney earlier this year. Hazzard described the industry as unregulated and dangerous.
This investigation also comes as a 37-year-old man in Newcastle was charged with mutilating the genitals of a 33-year-old woman who underwent a procedure in 2016. The man will face court on 15 May.
The minister told ABC News:
“I’ve asked the Ministry for Health to look at what we can do to make it safer for people who are perhaps going through a bad time in their life and thinking these things are OK to do.”
In response the ministry suggests minors should be prohibited from undergoing modification and that there should be stricter qualification requirements for legitimate professionals. The ministry also recommended compulsory records of client consent.
Hazzard then suggested Body Dysmorphic Disorder was a possible reason body modifiers choose to undergo procedures. In other words, Hazzard believes people choose to undergo body modifications because of a mental illness where one can only focus on a specific flaw in their appearance.
As reported by The Guardian, Hazzard said:
“My view is that people should be required to have some sort of psychological assessment before they go and have any of these major things done to their body that puts themselves at risk.”
