Trenton, N.J. — A bill moving through the New Jersey State Assembly would make it illegal for minors to get Botox (onabotulinumtoxinA, Allergan) injections without a doctor’s confirmation that the treatment is medically necessary, the Associated Press reports.
The bill cites American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery statistics that teenagers received more than 12,000 Botox injections in 2009 — nearly twice what was reported the previous year.
According to the AP report, Assemblywoman Cleopatra Tucker says the issue took on even more urgency with the news that a California woman appeared on television saying she injects her 8-year-old daughter with Botox to help her compete in beauty pageants. The woman later recanted that claim.
AP quotes Assemblyman/physician Herb Conaway Jr., M.D., as saying, “It is dangerous enough for adults. Children certainly shouldn't be subjected to this procedure.”
The legislation would require doctors to document on a patient’s chart the medical, non-cosmetic reason for performing the procedure on a minor. Responsibility for adopting those regulations would be left to the state medical board and the state health commissioner.
The bill passed 10-1 in committee. No companion bill has been introduced in the state Senate.
