Minnesota Lawmakers To Allow Students To Apply Sunscreen?

                A bill pending in the Minnesota Legislature would allow students to apply sun screen without written permission from a doctor. Has the North Star State gone full-on Libertarian? Is it harkening back to the days of the Wild, Wild West where anything goes?

                The FDA currently considers sunscreen an over-the-counter drug, triggering the need for a doctor’s note in many schools around the country. The proposed legislation is supported by the Minnesota Dermatology Society. The Society’s president, University of Minnesota professor Kristen Hook, stated, “We know that regular use of sunscreen at a young age is a critical component of skin cancer prevention and can significantly reduce lifetime risk of developing skin cancer.” Nine other states are currently considering similar legislation.

                National dermatology groups have lobbied for the removal of sunscreen from the over-the-counter drug category, without success, despite testimony that there has been virtually no adverse reactions to children’s sunscreen. What kind of lobbyists are they? They must be absolutely clueless. Most competent lobbyists can get lawmakers to bark like a dog and vote to legalize recreational marijuana use and infanticide. These guys can’t convince them to help protect our kid’s health at no cost to anyone?

                The pending bill would not require schools to provide or apply sunscreen, just allow students to protect themselves. I can see why lawmakers are skeptical, though. Sunscreen is clearly a gateway over-the-counter drug. If this bill passes, how long will it be before kids want the right to apply Chapstick or deodorant to their young bodies? Perhaps even Band-Aids?