Starting Wednesday, Minnesotans who scroll through social media sites will see new warning labels aimed at raising the potential risks of excessive use.
Lawmakers passed a bill requiring the warning labels in 2025, citing concerns about how the sites and apps can cause mental health issues, especially among young users. They said the labels will be like warnings for tobacco products or alcohol.
Under the law, the companies that run the sites will have to provide a pop up message from the Minnesota Department of Health that offers contact information for the suicide and crisis lifeline. Users would need to acknowledge the warning label before moving on to photos, articles or posts.
NetChoice, an industry group representing social media companies, sued over the labels. The lawsuit contends the sites shouldn’t be required to pass on state-issued messages to their users under the argument that the health warnings are “designed to block, burden, and browbeat” social media users. A federal judge didn’t take action to block the labels before the law took hold.
What will these pop-ups look like?
The state department of health has approved a warning that reads, “THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REQUIRES THIS MESSAGE: Some studies have shown that too much social media use is linked to increased mental health symptoms, including anxiety and depression, as well as harm to diet, sleep, and body image. If you need help, call or text 988 or visit 988Lifeline.org.”
Barring court intervention, the messages will be displayed on social media sites and apps when users first click into them. They will have to acknowledge the pop-up to move forward.
Why are they starting now?
State legislators approved a law last year requiring the new messages. They waited a year for the enactment date so that the state could craft the warning and allow social media sites to implement them.
Former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called for the warning labels to be placed on the sites in 2024. He pointed to research indicating that prolonged social media use can lead to worse mental health outcomes, higher rates of eating disorders and body image issues among children and adolescents. Minnesota is the first state to pass legislation requiring them.
“I would imagine we'd get some challenges, but I got to tell you right now, the social media and the tech folks are not the No. 1 favorites of Americans,” Gov. Tim Walz said Tuesday. “I think they're going to have to try and reach out and meet us part way on this, protecting our children from some of the things we know can cause harm.”
What happens if sites don’t share them?
Failure to add the labels could be met with investigation and civil punishment.