Surgeon General Calls for Age Restriction on Social Media Access

US Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy said Thursday imposing age restrictions on social media access, protecting children's data privacy, and requiring data transparency from companies would help parents and children to understand the potential harm of social media.

Relying solely on social media platforms to ensure child safety is futile, Murthy told the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. Despite these platforms having been in existence for almost two decades, they are insufficient and progressing at a slow pace, he said.

Murphy also said it would be appropriate to issue a surgeon general's warning on social media's impact on youth if Congress grants him the authority.

The Senate panel delved into the potential harm of social media to young people and discussed efforts to enhance the accessibility of high-quality mental health. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chairman of the HELP Committee, highlighted various factors contributing to the youth mental health crisis, including the Covid-19 pandemic's social isolation, excessive social media use, concerns about climate change and gun violence in schools, and economic insecurities.

The bipartisan concern over the potential harm of social media to youth intensified as Sen. Christopher Murphy (D-Conn.) voiced his concerns at the speed with which harmful content reaches teenagers upon creating social media accounts, while Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) urged social media companies to actively safeguard children.

"Greed is a horrible thing, and greed to take advantage of our youth is a horrible thing. I just call on the social media companies to take self-accountability to do something about this," Marshall said. "Don't wait for Congress to do it. They know what the right thing is to do."

In February 2023, 50% of young adults aged 18 to 24 reported experiencing anxiety and depression symptoms, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of the US Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey.

Data from Health Resources and Services Administration indicated more than 158 million Americans live in designated health professional shortage areas and over 60% of children who are struggling with depression don't access mental health services.

In May, Murthy issued two advisories about both the risk of social media on adolescents’ and children's mental health and the impact of the epidemic of loneliness and isolation. In Thursday's hearing, he voiced his concerns regarding the significant shift toward online interaction and the diminishing in-person engagement, especially for children.

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), ranking member of the HELP Committee, pointed out that since the Mental Health Reform Act of 2015, Congress passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, investing billions of dollars to ensure universal access to mental health care in various settings in 2022. And the Biden-Harris administration announced last year the expansion of mental health services in schools through federal funding and the launch of a national youth mental health hotline to provide immediate support and resources to young people in need.

"All these grants and programs only make a difference if state and local governments are aware of and apply and show local leadership in order to participate. We need this local leadership to use these resources to make sure the assistance reaches those who need it most," Cassidy said. "As a ranking member of the committee, improving our federal programs that are more effective and having greater reach is crucial."

The Department of Education has collaborated with the Department of Health and Human Services to streamline access to Medicaid for school-based mental health services, said Katherine Neas, the deputy assistant secretary of education, in response to a question from Sanders regarding the potential impact of millions of people losing their Medicaid on mental health coverage when the federal Covid emergency ended in May.

"We’ve been working hand in glove with the department to get word out to our school leaders about this time of re-enrollment and hoping that those children who have to re-enroll in Medicaid are found eligible and that those that are found not eligible can be directed to another source of of insurance," Neas said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Cici Yu at [email protected]

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Cheryl Saenz at [email protected]

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