By Kevin Lewis - June 7, 2015
A DECADE AGO, at the beginning of the obesity epidemic, there was talk of people suing fast-food companies, akin to the tobacco lawsuits of the 1990s. In response, many states passed laws limiting liability for selling food. Now there’s a study by economists, including the Department's Christopher Carpenter, at Vanderbilt University finding that residents of these states — especially those who were heavier — reported eating more fruits and vegetables and were more likely to be trying to lose weight after these laws passed, even controlling for other trends and state economic, regulatory, and demographic characteristics. There were, however, no net effects on actual weight loss or exercise. Notwithstanding the healthy-diet trend, there was an increase in fast-food industry employment, and in the number of McDonald’s restaurants that were company-owned rather than franchised.
Carpenter, C. & Tello-Trillo, S., “Do ‘Cheeseburger Bills’ Work? Effects of Tort Reform for Fast Food,” National Bureau of Economic Research (May 2015).