Posted on Jan 10, 2017
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Changes abound starting 1 Feb 2017 in the US Air Force.
Beginning Feb. 1, the Air Force will no longer enforce its 25 percent tattoo rule, the service announced Tuesday.
Airmen were previously not allowed to have tattoos on the chest, back, arms and legs that were larger than 25 percent of the exposed body part. Now, they could have full tattoo sleeves on their arms or large back pieces if they so choose.
Tattoos, body markings or brands on the head, neck, face, tongue, lips and/or scalp are still prohibited, according to an Air Force news release. Tattoos on the hands will be limited to one single-band ring tattoo, on one finger. Airmen who already have hand tattoos that were already authorized will be grandfathered in, according to the release.
The changes result from a tattoo policy review the Air Force began conducting earlier this year.
A review of Air Force field recruiters showed that almost half of contacts, applicants and recruits had tattoos, the release said. One of every five had tattoos that required a review or could be considered disqualifying. By lifting the 25 percent rule, the Air Force opens the population eligible for joining the service.
Tattoos that discriminate or are obscene remain prohibited.
A new #Tattoo policy is here! We are also taking other steps to continue to allow the best to become #Airmen. https://t.co/XP9z0ABK4f pic.twitter.com/byicmZxKfz
— U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) January 10, 2017
“As part of our effort to attract and retain as many qualified airmen as possible, we periodically review our accessions policies,” Secretary Deborah Lee James said in the release. “In this instance, we identified specific changes we can make to allow more members of our nation to serve without compromising quality. As a next step in this evolution, we are opening the aperture on certain medical accession criteria and tattoos while taking into account our needs for worldwide deployability and our commitment to the profession of arms."
The Air Force also reviewed medical accession standards, prompting policy changes to waivers concerning common conditions that have disqualified potential airmen. These include eczema, asthma and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Waivers for these three conditions comprise the highest volume of requests from recruiters, the release said.
Air Force candidates who are medically classified as having mild forms of eczema will be processed for a waiver. However, certain restrictions may be applied to secure personal and mission safety.
For asthma, the service will use the methacholine challenge yest to provide an objective measure of candidates with an uncertain history of asthma. Candidates who pass this test will receive a waiver.
Recruits who do not meet the standard of never having taken more than a single daily dosage of medication for ADHD or not having been prescribed medication for their conditions for more than 24 cumulative months after age 14 will be processed for a waiver if they have demonstrated at least 15 months of performance stability, without use of medication.
These waiver changes are effective immediately.
The Air Force also is updating its policy about marijuana use before joining the service. The change removes the numerical limitations on a potential recruit's prior use of marijuana. This means a potential recruit will not be disqualified for service based on how much marijuana he or she smoked in the past.
The old policy was found to not reflect current legalization of marijuana in numerous states, according to the release. Airmen still won’t be allowed to currently use it, but they won’t be asked how many times they had used it in the past.
“We are always looking at our policies and, when appropriate, adjusting them to ensure a broad scope of individuals are eligible to serve. These changes allow the Air Force to aggressively recruit talented and capable Americans who until now might not have been able to serve our country in uniform,” Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force James A. Cody said in the release.
Beginning Feb. 1, the Air Force will no longer enforce its 25 percent tattoo rule, the service announced Tuesday.
Airmen were previously not allowed to have tattoos on the chest, back, arms and legs that were larger than 25 percent of the exposed body part. Now, they could have full tattoo sleeves on their arms or large back pieces if they so choose.
Tattoos, body markings or brands on the head, neck, face, tongue, lips and/or scalp are still prohibited, according to an Air Force news release. Tattoos on the hands will be limited to one single-band ring tattoo, on one finger. Airmen who already have hand tattoos that were already authorized will be grandfathered in, according to the release.
The changes result from a tattoo policy review the Air Force began conducting earlier this year.
A review of Air Force field recruiters showed that almost half of contacts, applicants and recruits had tattoos, the release said. One of every five had tattoos that required a review or could be considered disqualifying. By lifting the 25 percent rule, the Air Force opens the population eligible for joining the service.
Tattoos that discriminate or are obscene remain prohibited.
A new #Tattoo policy is here! We are also taking other steps to continue to allow the best to become #Airmen. https://t.co/XP9z0ABK4f pic.twitter.com/byicmZxKfz
— U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) January 10, 2017
“As part of our effort to attract and retain as many qualified airmen as possible, we periodically review our accessions policies,” Secretary Deborah Lee James said in the release. “In this instance, we identified specific changes we can make to allow more members of our nation to serve without compromising quality. As a next step in this evolution, we are opening the aperture on certain medical accession criteria and tattoos while taking into account our needs for worldwide deployability and our commitment to the profession of arms."
The Air Force also reviewed medical accession standards, prompting policy changes to waivers concerning common conditions that have disqualified potential airmen. These include eczema, asthma and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Waivers for these three conditions comprise the highest volume of requests from recruiters, the release said.
Air Force candidates who are medically classified as having mild forms of eczema will be processed for a waiver. However, certain restrictions may be applied to secure personal and mission safety.
For asthma, the service will use the methacholine challenge yest to provide an objective measure of candidates with an uncertain history of asthma. Candidates who pass this test will receive a waiver.
Recruits who do not meet the standard of never having taken more than a single daily dosage of medication for ADHD or not having been prescribed medication for their conditions for more than 24 cumulative months after age 14 will be processed for a waiver if they have demonstrated at least 15 months of performance stability, without use of medication.
These waiver changes are effective immediately.
The Air Force also is updating its policy about marijuana use before joining the service. The change removes the numerical limitations on a potential recruit's prior use of marijuana. This means a potential recruit will not be disqualified for service based on how much marijuana he or she smoked in the past.
The old policy was found to not reflect current legalization of marijuana in numerous states, according to the release. Airmen still won’t be allowed to currently use it, but they won’t be asked how many times they had used it in the past.
“We are always looking at our policies and, when appropriate, adjusting them to ensure a broad scope of individuals are eligible to serve. These changes allow the Air Force to aggressively recruit talented and capable Americans who until now might not have been able to serve our country in uniform,” Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force James A. Cody said in the release.
Air Force loosens tattoo rules, recruiting restrictions
Posted from airforcetimes.com
Airmen
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Wow TSgt Joe C. it seems strange that the Air Force will no longer enforce its 25 percent tattoo rule, the service announced Tuesday.
'Airmen were previously not allowed to have tattoos on the chest, back, arms and legs that were larger than 25 percent of the exposed body part. Now, they could have full tattoo sleeves on their arms or large back pieces if they so choose."
So if an airmen becomes infected because they had tattoos who will responsible the airmen or the military service. I certainly hope the VA does not consider infections form tattoos as directly-related to military service any time soon or far away for that matter.
SP5 Mark Kuzinski SMSgt Minister Gerald A. Thomas LTC Stephen C. Capt Seid Waddell CW5 (Join to see) SFC William Farrell SSgt (Join to see) SGT (Join to see) SGT Forrest Stewart SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright Maj William W. 'Bill' Price Capt Tom Brown SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4" SSgt Robert Marx SGT Robert George PO2 Ed C.
'Airmen were previously not allowed to have tattoos on the chest, back, arms and legs that were larger than 25 percent of the exposed body part. Now, they could have full tattoo sleeves on their arms or large back pieces if they so choose."
So if an airmen becomes infected because they had tattoos who will responsible the airmen or the military service. I certainly hope the VA does not consider infections form tattoos as directly-related to military service any time soon or far away for that matter.
SP5 Mark Kuzinski SMSgt Minister Gerald A. Thomas LTC Stephen C. Capt Seid Waddell CW5 (Join to see) SFC William Farrell SSgt (Join to see) SGT (Join to see) SGT Forrest Stewart SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright Maj William W. 'Bill' Price Capt Tom Brown SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4" SSgt Robert Marx SGT Robert George PO2 Ed C.
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LTC Stephen F.
I had to chuckle when I read your comments SSG Mike Merritt and MSgt (Join to see)
I realize you have probably not ever ben infected through getting a tattoo. For everybody else, here is a link to the US Government CDC FAQ about Hepatitis transmission.
Below is a typical US Government summary.
"Can you get Hepatitis C by getting a tattoo or piercing?
A few major research studies have not shown Hepatitis C to be spread through licensed, commercial tattooing facilities. However, transmission of Hepatitis C (and other infectious diseases) is possible when poor infection-control practices are used during tattooing or piercing. Body art is becoming increasingly popular in the United States, and unregulated tattooing and piercing are known to occur in prisons and other informal or unregulated settings. Further research is needed to determine if these types of settings and exposures are responsible for Hepatitis C virus transmission."
https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/hcv/cfaq.htm
LTC Stephen C. Maj William W. 'Bill' Price Capt Christopher Mueller Capt Seid Waddell CW5 (Join to see) SMSgt Minister Gerald A. Thomas SGM David W. Carr LOM, DMSM MP SGT SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4" SSgt (Join to see) SGT (Join to see) SP5 Mark Kuzinski SGT Forrest Stewart SGT John " Mac " McConnell SGT Robert George SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright Kim Bolen RN CCM ACM
I realize you have probably not ever ben infected through getting a tattoo. For everybody else, here is a link to the US Government CDC FAQ about Hepatitis transmission.
Below is a typical US Government summary.
"Can you get Hepatitis C by getting a tattoo or piercing?
A few major research studies have not shown Hepatitis C to be spread through licensed, commercial tattooing facilities. However, transmission of Hepatitis C (and other infectious diseases) is possible when poor infection-control practices are used during tattooing or piercing. Body art is becoming increasingly popular in the United States, and unregulated tattooing and piercing are known to occur in prisons and other informal or unregulated settings. Further research is needed to determine if these types of settings and exposures are responsible for Hepatitis C virus transmission."
https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/hcv/cfaq.htm
LTC Stephen C. Maj William W. 'Bill' Price Capt Christopher Mueller Capt Seid Waddell CW5 (Join to see) SMSgt Minister Gerald A. Thomas SGM David W. Carr LOM, DMSM MP SGT SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4" SSgt (Join to see) SGT (Join to see) SP5 Mark Kuzinski SGT Forrest Stewart SGT John " Mac " McConnell SGT Robert George SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright Kim Bolen RN CCM ACM
Hepatitis C FAQs for the Public | Division of Viral Hepatitis | CDC
“Hepatitis” means inflammation of the liver. Toxins, certain drugs, some diseases, heavy alcohol use, and bacterial and viral infections can all cause hepatitis. Hepatitis is also the name of a family of viral infections that affect the liver; the most common types are Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C.
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MSgt (Join to see)
Sir, a lot of things are "possible". It is also possible from catching syphilis while sitting on a public toilet. If that is your concern, I'll go to bet that you shall be able to rest at night because like homosexuals have already been in the military, people have had tattoos covering more than 25% of their body long before this was published. LTC Stephen F. -
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SSG Mike Merritt
I hear you can something that penicillin or being rodded off the range won't fix from a stripper, yet we never let that stop us from going to dirt wood or Sharkey's. it's really a ridiculous statement sir. LTC Stephen F. -
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LTC Stephen F.
MSgt (Join to see) - I am glad you are healthy and hope you stay that way. For some reason Hepatitis C has become too common. My wife got a strain of hepatitis from food in Bolivia in the early 1970s which almost killed her.
It is funny you mentioned toilet set since my wife is concerned about public toilets. I have explained to my wife that inanimate objects don't transmit disease like VD which requires warm, moist environments to survive.
Yes, we had homosexuals in the combat arms in the 1970s and 1980s. The vast majority of the sexually promiscuous homosexuals soldiers died in the AIDS "crisis" of the 1990s.
In those days there were many reasons that tattoos were discouraged, part of it was in the event that could be captured in certain areas. Some groups in South America and the southwest Pacific jungle-islands skinned their victims and the Nazi's made lampshades and other things like that from interesting tattoos they took of the dead after gassing with zyklon b.
As far as I know al Qaeda, al Shabaab, Boko Horan, ISIS, Taliban and their "allies" don't skin their victims; but, I wouldn't be surprised if ISIS realizes there is "probably" a black market for the sale of human skin products.
As long as you are going to a licensed and certified tattoo artist there should be minimal risk of infection because the equipment is sterilized between uses.
Where I live - around Washington, DC- tainted heroin has been the big killer for some time and MS13 and some other groups are trying to surpasses the heroin death rate.
Stay safe SSG Mike Merritt
It is funny you mentioned toilet set since my wife is concerned about public toilets. I have explained to my wife that inanimate objects don't transmit disease like VD which requires warm, moist environments to survive.
Yes, we had homosexuals in the combat arms in the 1970s and 1980s. The vast majority of the sexually promiscuous homosexuals soldiers died in the AIDS "crisis" of the 1990s.
In those days there were many reasons that tattoos were discouraged, part of it was in the event that could be captured in certain areas. Some groups in South America and the southwest Pacific jungle-islands skinned their victims and the Nazi's made lampshades and other things like that from interesting tattoos they took of the dead after gassing with zyklon b.
As far as I know al Qaeda, al Shabaab, Boko Horan, ISIS, Taliban and their "allies" don't skin their victims; but, I wouldn't be surprised if ISIS realizes there is "probably" a black market for the sale of human skin products.
As long as you are going to a licensed and certified tattoo artist there should be minimal risk of infection because the equipment is sterilized between uses.
Where I live - around Washington, DC- tainted heroin has been the big killer for some time and MS13 and some other groups are trying to surpasses the heroin death rate.
Stay safe SSG Mike Merritt
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30, 40, 50+ years after the fact I can tell you they ain't gonna look near bout like they did when you got them..
Given my druthers I should have spent the bucks on more beer... Hangovers don't last a lifetime..
Given my druthers I should have spent the bucks on more beer... Hangovers don't last a lifetime..
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SFC William Farrell
Funny SCPO William Akin More than forty year ago when I was on active duty I spent my money on beer and even though i got drunk enough all too often, I never got a tattoo although I was out with guys who did. Maybe its time now, at my age I wont be around to worry about how they look in 30 years!
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