You Have to Pass It to See What's In It!

As I bemoaned the ACA while it was in process, one of the things I was concerned about was the Law enabled Agencies to create the Rules. Most people think the Law is the Law, not really, the Rules are the Law and the ACA enabled the FDA, amongst other Agencies to come up with a real mess.

Take the FDA's own blog where they introduce the new food labeling law. They state:

The Affordable Care Act requires calorie and other nutrition information on menu and menu boards for consumers in chain restaurants and other “similar retail establishments” that sell restaurant-type food.  In 2011, FDA issued a proposed rule (see our previous post here).  FDA received 1,100 comments, many of which focused on the reach of the law.  The final rule contains few of the accommodations that industry requested.  Despite the many comments and legislative proposals to  exempt certain categories of retail food establishments (see our previous post here), the final rule significantly broadens the definition of covered establishments by redefining “restaurants and similar retail establishments” and “restaurant-type food,” and provides limited relief compared to the proposed regulation. The Federal Register publication of the final rule is 105 pages and will require careful analysis to assess its full impact and determine how compliance can be achieved.  This blog post aims at identifying some of the notable aspects and differences between the proposed and final rule.

That 105 pages of Government speak detailing how restaurants must meet the labeling laws as promulgated under the FDAs reading of the ACA.

Will this reduce obesity? Hardly, ever see these porkys read the menus, just plop down and shovel it in. Go to any fast food place or better yet the chain restaurants prevalent at most highway drop offs.

What will this do? Increase the costs of food. Will it influence consumer food consumption? The answer is no, just look at the carriages of junk food at the markets which have had this information for decades.

The only thing to stop it is a financial cost. Namely those who are overweight or obese should pay a fine on a per pound or per BMI fraction. Take your pick.

But this is just a small example of how the ACA will seep like a pestilence into every pore of our existence, and to no positive effect, just increase Government control while costing us all more  and taking money from the economy which could be better spent on creating jobs! Real jobs!