By Rich Daly
In September, Sens. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and John Fetterman (D-Pa.) introduced the Stop the Scroll Act, which would create a mental health warning label requirement for social media platforms.
The bill aims to ensure all users, especially adolescents, are aware of the potential mental health risks posed by social media usage and are provided access to mental health resources.
“As a senator, but more importantly, as a dad to three young kids, I feel a duty to address how dangerous unchecked social media can be for our mental health,” Fetterman said in a press release. “The evidence is right in front of us — addiction, anxiety, depression and suicide are on the rise, and it’s directly tied to these platforms.” The bill came in response to a June op-ed from U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy that called for such warnings.
The evidence is right in front of us — addiction, anxiety, depression and suicide are on the rise, and it’s directly tied to these platforms.
— John Fetterman
“The mental health crisis among young people is an emergency — and social media has emerged as an important contributor,” Murthy wrote.
He cited research that said adolescents who spend more than three hours a day on social media face double the risk of anxiety and depression symptoms. Meanwhile, the average daily use in that age group was 4.8 hours.
Would it work?
The effectiveness of such a warning, wrote Murthy, was demonstrated in previous research that concluded warning labels on tobacco products can increase awareness and change behavior. Murthy cited a February Brookings Institution survey of Latino parents that found 76% of parents would limit or monitor their children’s social media use if there was a warning from the surgeon general.
Other steps Murthy called for that are not included in the legislation are barring social media sites from collecting sensitive data from children and requiring the companies to share all of their data on health effects with independent researchers and the public.
What kind of warning?
The bill leaves it up the surgeon general to develop the specific language in the warning but also mandates several features of it including:
- It must appear in a pop-up box format upon opening a social media platform
- Each user would need to acknowledge the potential mental health risks in order to proceed to use the platform
- The warning label could not be hidden or obscured
“This bill will help kids and parents alike take control of their social media use, not the other way around,” Fetterman said.
The warning label, which the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) would enforce, also would provide links to mental health resources, including national suicide prevention and crisis hotlines.
“Equipped with the knowledge of the dangers and empowered with the resources to address it, this simple solution will help parents and kids thrive,” Britt said.
The bill could have a long path to enactment into law, since the congressional calendar is very limited before the current Congress ends at the end of 2024. But legislation is commonly re-introduced in the subsequent Congress when it will have two years to make it through the legislative process.