Looking to get a tattoo in Louisville? Here's how studios are inspected to ensure they're following state guidelines

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Shops offering tattoos and piercings can pose infection risks, sometimes even hepatitis and staph infection.

The city runs inspections on those shops to make sure owners and operators are following state guidelines. Health officials want people to know what to look for before choosing an artist and a location.

In a tattoo parlor, the details are everything. From the drawing, to the skin, and even the tools and paperwork behind the scenes, health inspectors said it's imperative to make sure everything is up to code.

At True Grit Tattoo Company on Bardstown Road in Louisville, personalization and precision go hand-in-hand. Shop owner David Honaker got his first tattoo when he was 17. Now, he's running True Grit.

"I've always been drawn to it, even as a little kid, which is weird because I didn't grow up around anybody that had tattoos," said Honaker.

Keeping track of instruments, certifications, and client documents are paramount to a studio's success.

"There's a whole lot of just keeping supplies in stock and everything like that, make sure expiration dates are not, we're not getting too far ahead so that we lose expiration dates," he said.

Health inspections at tattoo shops cover everything, like checking the expiration dates on every cartridge an artist uses.

"If they do have like no running water or sewage, we would not allow them to be open for business," Environmental Health Manager Sierra Warren said.

The Louisville Metro Department of Health and Wellness inspects 116 facilities twice a year.

"What some people call cross-contamination and acceptable is not the same as what everybody else does, so it's good to have like a standard," said Honaker.

Health officials said the most common violations are:

Expired bloodborne pathogen training certifications
Unmaintained client records
Violating restrictions on procedures for clients under age 18
Expired needles and instruments

The risks: Life-threatening hepatitis, staph, and MRSA infections.

"Anytime that I've worked in the health department we have not closed any business permanently for violations," said Warren.

Each location has one unexpected city inspection every six months. In Jefferson County, a passing score is 85 or above.

According to an open records request, more than 90 inspections scored between 90-100% in 2022. One business, Zoe's Tattoo, had a failing score of 80%.

In 2023, more than 120 inspections scored between 90-100%. Tatu, in Mall St. Matthews, had two failing inspection scores. However, as of Feb. 15, Tutu now has a score of 100%.

"If they do score under, I believe it's 60 (%), it is a permanent closure, or it's a closure on the spot and then once they correct the violations and bring it up to a passing score with no critical violations, we can reopen them. But that has never happened here in Jefferson County," Warren said.

For some violations, the city gives the owner 10 days to fix the problem. Back at True Grit, the shop has always had a score of 100%.

"I definitely think like, it's trust your gut. If it's like you walk in and it's not comfortable, seems like a clean space, maybe rethink and check out some other places," said Honaker.

Regulations are on the city and state website:

Right now, neither the city or the state make tattoo shops hang their inspection scores for public view.

For more information about tattoo and body art studios and regulations, or to request a specific location's score, visit the city's Tattoo and Body Art website or call (502) 574-6650.

Tattoo Salvation in NuLu can also been seen in the video version of this WDRB story.