Obesity: Will A Bill to Ban Obesity-Related Lawsuits Ever Pass?
Posted Dec 18 2008 7:34pm
Note from Connie: I'm not sure if you’ve heard about theCommon Sense Consumption Act of 2007 (H.R. 2183), but if you haven't, you should read this intriguingeditorialabout it from Virginian-Pilot columnistKerry Dougherty. SUGAR SHOCK! Blog researcher Karen James tells you about it while I continue relaxing during my long-needed vacation.
“Why should fast-food joints be immune to frivolous lawsuits? Let them be at risk like everyone else,” Dougherty writes.
But seriously, the bill would make it impossible to sue food manufacturers, restaurants, distributors, advertisers, etc. for claims of injury regarding weight gain, obesity or other health conditions associated with them.
If food were intentionally mislabeled, a suit could proceed, however.
In her book SUGAR SHOCK!, Connie offers a fascinating account of the lawsuits filed thus far, in a chapter, entitled, "Is Big Sugar the Next Big Tobacco?"
Note from Connie: I'm not sure if you’ve heard about theCommon Sense Consumption Act of 2007 (H.R. 2183), but if you haven't, you should read this intriguingeditorialabout it from Virginian-Pilot columnistKerry Dougherty. SUGAR SHOCK! Blog researcher Karen James tells you about it while I continue relaxing during my long-needed vacation.
The Virginian-Pilot columnist Kerry Dougherty humorously argues against Common Sense Consumption Act of 2007 (H.R. 2183), which was introduced in the House in May by Rep. Dan Boren, D-Ok. (Boren, incidentally, counted the National Beer Wholesalers Association and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union among his top 20 contributors since 2004, according to The Center for Responsive Politics.)
“Why should fast-food joints be immune to frivolous lawsuits? Let them be at risk like everyone else,” Dougherty writes.
But seriously, the bill would make it impossible to sue food manufacturers, restaurants, distributors, advertisers, etc. for claims of injury regarding weight gain, obesity or other health conditions associated with them.
If food were intentionally mislabeled, a suit could proceed, however.
In her book SUGAR SHOCK!, Connie offers a fascinating account of the lawsuits filed thus far, in a chapter, entitled, "Is Big Sugar the Next Big Tobacco?"