Product-risk labeling

by W. Kip Viscusi

California's Proposition 65, the first major state warnings effort, requires that manufacturers inform the public about the risks of cancer or reproductive toxicity that are posed by their products. Now eight other states have bills pending before their legislatures or are considering measures like Proposition 65. This volume asks, Would such warnings benefit the public? Or would some labeling strategies actually distort consumers' perceptions of relative risks and impair their ability to make informed choices? This book examines state regulations for hazard warnings - for foods, for drugs, and for medical devices - and demonstrates why a federal warnings approach would be preferable. Conducted at the national level, product-risk labeling could adopt a standardized warnings vocabulary and avoid the fragmentation of national markets that would be so costly for our economy.