Congress is being urged by a bipartisan group of 42 attorneys general to pass legislation that would mandate warning labels be present on social media platforms about the risks they pose to children. 

The letter addressed to Congress comes following a June op-ed written by Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy in which he called on lawmakers to mandate warning labels for social media mirroring those found on tobacco products. 

Murthy explains that the labels would state “that social media is associated with significant mental health harms for adolescents.”

The call for warning labels on social media platforms coincides with rising depression and anxiety rates among teenagers, as well as the presence of bullying and sexual exploitation on the platforms.  

Murthy argues that social media platforms lack the guardrails and safety precautions needed for children and teenagers to interact safely. 

“There is no seatbelt for parents to click, no helmet to snap in place, no assurance that trusted experts have investigated and ensured that these platforms are safe for our kids,” Murthy wrote. “There are just parents and their children, trying to figure it out on their own, pitted against some of the best product engineers and most well-resourced companies in the world.”

The attorneys general agreed with Murthy’s analysis, stating that warning labels are “one consequential step toward mitigating the risk of harm to youth.”

“By mandating a surgeon general’s warning on algorithm-driven social media platforms, Congress can help abate this growing crisis and protect future generations of Americans,” the group wrote. 

Many of the attorneys general sued Meta last year for intentionally putting profits over the safety and well-being of its users — particularly by creating features that would get younger users more addicted. 

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Already, Congress has made headway in addressing the mental health crisis spurred by social media platforms. In July, the Senate passed a bill to make tech companies more accountable in taking steps to prevent harming children. 

The coalition of attorneys general that signed on to the letter to Congress includes California, Colorado, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, Alabama, American Samoa, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.