[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 149 (Tuesday, September 24, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6371-S6373]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. BRITT (for herself and Mr. Fetterman):
  S. 5150. A bill to require the Federal Trade Commission, with the 
concurrence of the Secretary of Health and Human Services acting 
through the Surgeon General, to implement a mental health warning label 
on social

[[Page S6372]]

media platforms, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation.
  Mrs. BRITT. Madam President, it is always an honor to represent my 
great State, to stand and speak in front of my colleagues and before 
the American people. But today is particularly special for me as my 
parents are here in the Gallery, and I rise today with great concerns 
for our country as a parent myself.
  As a mom of two, I know firsthand the struggles that parents face 
with raising their children. You add doing that in this digital age, 
and obstacles and challenges become that much more great.
  Our country is in the throes of a mental health crisis. And don't 
just take my word for it. Just look at the data. Twenty percent of 
Americans between the ages of 12 and 17 experienced at least one major 
depressive episode in 2021. When looking at just girls, that number 
then increases to 29 percent.
  This crisis--and crisis doesn't even really feel strong enough when 
we are talking about rates this high--is alarming, and recent 
developments show us that. But before that, let's rewind.
  Between the years of 2011 and 2019, depression rates amongst our 
teenagers more than doubled. The number of adolescents who reported 
experiencing a major depressive episode shot up 60 percent from 2007 to 
2019.
  Emergency room visits by children and teens for anxiety, mood 
disorders, and self-harm increased sharply during this time as well, 
and suicide rates among our children, between the ages of 10 and then 
all the way to 24, which had been stable the previous decade, jumped by 
almost 60 percent.
  When we talk about suicide, the numbers show an incredible heartbreak 
of what is actually occurring. Suicide is now the second leading cause 
of death for Americans under the age of 44. In 2021, 25 percent of 
teenage girls made a plan to die by suicide.
  The next year, in 2022, one-third of high school girls said that they 
seriously considered taking their own life, and then 9 percent of our 
high school population actually attempted death by suicide. That is 9 
out of every 100 high schoolers. This is not OK.
  Meanwhile, factors that contribute positively to mental health are on 
the decline. Data from surveys conducted by groups like the CDC Youth 
Risk Behavior Surveillance System and the National Institute on Drug 
Abuse show that teens and tweens today get less sleep, less exercise, 
and have less in-person contact than their peers before them.
  So in an age where we brag about being more ``connected'' than ever, 
we have actually never been further apart. And while we should always 
be wary of blaming just one culprit, there is one thing that stands out 
among the rest, and that is social media usage.
  Nearly 100 percent of teenagers have access to smartphones. I am 
looking at our incredible group of pages down in front, and my guess 
is, if I polled this group, we would see that that stat is probably 
true. Half, though, of American teenagers say that they are online 
constantly.
  I wish that the Gallery could see that I am actually getting some 
shaking heads up here.
  This is about the same percentage of teens who reported feeling 
addicted to their smartphones in 2016.
  Fifty-four percent of American teenagers admit that it would be 
really hard to give up their social media, and 35 percent of American 
teenagers say that they are on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, 
Facebook--I am sure I am missing a few, right?--almost constantly.
  TikTok, in particular, has presented some really serious concerns. So 
for those of you who may not be aware, just this spring, several 
American lawmakers received death threats from users saying they would 
kill us if we voted for the TikTok divestment bill.
  My office got one of those messages; so did Senator Tillis from North 
Carolina. I wouldn't be surprised, if we polled all 100 Senators, if 
there weren't messages like this on many, many more machines. And the 
truth is, it wasn't just about killing us. These messages also said 
that, if we did this, they would kill themselves and/or harm others.
  That came just after TikTok urged its users to call American 
lawmakers and stop them from voting for that bill. So, clearly, social 
media has a deep hold on our country's children and teens.
  U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy wrote a few months ago that 
adolescents who spend more than 3 hours a day on social media double 
their risk of symptoms of anxiety and depression than those who do not.
  But guess what the data shows. Our teenagers aren't on social media 
for 3 hours a day, on average. They are on social media around 5 hours 
a day.
  Many kids acknowledge that social media is bad for them, and many 
parents acknowledge that, too. But the situation is clearly getting 
more devastating. It seems to just be getting worse.
  Our kids are suffering, with many not realizing that the root cause 
is due to the addictive quality of social media, and they actually seem 
to feel powerless on how to end that.
  Earlier this summer, the Surgeon General called for the creation of a 
warning label on social media, and 42 out of 50 State attorneys 
general, including Alabama's own Steve Marshall and Pennsylvania's 
Michelle Henry, backed this proposal.
  Senator Fetterman and I are on the same page about this. There should 
be a warning label on social media, and that is why today we have 
introduced the Stop the Scroll Act. Our bill would require a social 
media platform to have a warning label to be placed on it to ensure 
that users know about the potential adverse effects of these apps and 
they must acknowledge that before proceeding to use them.
  While Senator Fetterman and I agree on the importance of these 
labels, we also recognize that we are not the experts here. Our bill 
would not determine what the label would say. Rather, we would leave 
that up to the Surgeon General.
  The only requirement that this bill would create is that the warning 
label include a way to quickly access mental health resources--which, 
in our mind, would look like a link to 9-8-8, the Suicide and Crisis 
Lifeline, or other resources--putting them quickly at the fingertips of 
those who need them most.
  Now, warning labels won't prevent the American people from using the 
app, just like warnings on tobacco or alcohol don't stop someone from 
purchasing them. The warning is a caution so that consumers have their 
eyes opened to the potential dangers ahead. It empowers them to make 
informed decisions.
  It is similar to when a doctor tells a patient they need to limit 
their sugar intake, right? The doctor isn't going to force you to stop 
eating sugar, but the warning from the doctor will likely make the 
patient think twice. In that situation, the doctor will usually provide 
advice on how to reduce sugar in your diet.
  That is what the warning does. It makes sure consumers' eyes are 
open. It ensures that they acknowledge it before moving forward, and it 
provides direction to access resources if that user needs help.
  The Stop the Scroll Act isn't a cure. It is a caution that will 
hopefully help promote healthier social media usage, while providing 
those in crisis with the resources they need to get help.
  It is an important step forward in creating a safer digital age for 
all Americans.
  So I am grateful for the leadership of my colleague from Pennsylvania 
Senator Fetterman in introducing this important legislation alongside 
me today. I want to thank Senator Fetterman and Surgeon General Murthy 
for their efforts to address the dangers of social media.
  I am committed to continuing to work in a bipartisan fashion to help 
our kids have the kind of childhood that we were blessed to enjoy and 
to ensure that they have access to the American dream, rather than the 
social media nightmares that so many families are dealing with today.

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