Tony Thurmond: “Unfortunately, the wine industry may already have had ironic success in its campaign. According to a recent study by the…”

“Unfortunately, the wine industry may already have had ironic success in its campaign. According to a recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, four times as many pregnant women frequently consumed alcohol in 1995 than did in 1991. The study attributes reports about the so-called health benefits of moderate wine consumption as a cause for this terrible increase. The decision by Treasury and A.T.F. to approve new health claims labels will escalate the problems of alcohol abuse. Last week, several big liquor firms signaled an intent to attach health-benefits labels to bottles of liquor. The alcohol industry's veiled attempt to use health claims as a marketing scheme has gone on long enough. And the passive complicity of Treasury and A.T.F. is unacceptable. Today I am introducing three bills that will address this public health dilemma. The first bill, the Alcoholic Beverage Labeling Act of 1999, will transfer authority over alcoholic beverage labeling from the Department of Treasury to the Department of Health and Human Services.”