It is estimated that "as many as 45 million Americans have tattoos. This number is based on the finding by a Harris Interactive Poll in 2003 that 16 percent of all adults and 36 percent of people 25 to 29 had at least one tattoo. The poll also found that 17 percent of tattooed Americans regretted it."
Natasha Singer's article Erasing Tattoos, Out of Regret or for a New Canvas in the June 17 New York Times
addresses the "growing industry catering to people who may not have thought about the implications [that tattoos are] “forever” the first time around.