Minnesota lawmakers have approved a measure requiring social media platforms to display a warning label, cautioning about the negative impacts of its use on mental health.
The bill, which the legislature sent to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) on Thursday, requires platforms to display the warning each time a user accesses the site. Users must acknowledge the “potential for harm” and choose “to proceed to the social media platform despite the risk.”
The measure specifically notes the warning label cannot be exclusively provided in a platform’s terms and conditions or include “extraneous” information reducing the visibility of the warning.
The label must also feature resources to address the potential negative impacts associated with social media, including a website and phone number for a national suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline.
The push to include warning labels on the apps has gained steam amid increasing concerns about the impacts of social media, particularly on children.
Former surgeon general Vivek Murthy called for social media warning labels last year after previously issuing an advisory about the impact of social media on kids’ mental health.
“The mental health crisis among young people is an emergency — and social media has emerged as an important contributor,” Murthy wrote in an op-ed published by The New York Times last June.
“A surgeon general’s warning label, which requires congressional action, would regularly remind parents and adolescents that social media has not been proved safe,” he added.
Congress has also considered legislation to establish stronger protections for kids online, including the Kids Online Safey Act (KOSA).
KOSA, which was reintroduced last month by Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), seeks to create regulations for the features that tech companies offer kids online and reduce the addictive nature and mental health effects of these platforms.
The bill passed the Senate last year but ultimately hit roadblocks in the House.
