“There was a state legislator in Texas (I want to say it was Eddie Bernice Johnson) who claimed cosmetology licenses are necessary because they can detect venereal diseases in your scalp...”
Someone must have told him you could get VD from a head job.
Chairwoman of the House Science committee. Oddly the comment is theoretically correct. Syphilis, which all would usually is a venereal disease, can present with scalp hair loss. It might be diagnosed just from its appearance then. And it would be contagious. That said I've never seen it, but perhaps its much more common in her district than here in Iowa. Much more likely a hair dresser would see ringworm infections or head lice. More importantly they might spot a skin cancer, even a melanoma, which might not be seen there by others. People have come to me saying their barber recommended they get checked and sometimes it has been productive. I'm not saying they need 1500 hours, but they should get some training in hygiene and in recognizing as oddities things that deserve to be checked by someone more medical. Some people become a allergic to hair dyes or to perm chemicals. They need to be aware of that too and I can think of a few more medical things of which I'd like them to be aware beyond the mechanics of their job and ideally enough business training so they can succeed in it.