This week California joined the fight to protect models with the proposal of a new law that would require doctors to verify that models are of healthy weight and not suffering from an eating disorder. The state is following the lead of several countries that are working towards banning ultra-thin models and regulating the industry which has been known to promote an unhealthy body image.
"The evidence of eating disorders in the modeling industry is alarming," said Marc Levine, an assemblyman who represents the Marin County suburbs of San Francisco, in a statement."This is a societal problem as unhealthy models have become role models for young people. As California often leads the nation and the world, this bill will help assure that our children will see healthy images on magazines and fashion websites.”
According to Levine, 40 percent of models suffer from eating disorders. The new bill, introduced on Monday, would require all agencies to be licensed with the California Labor Commissioner and a fine to be issued if their models weren't declared healthy with a certificate from a physician, reports The Fashion Law. Similar to the other laws and codes that have been passed abroad, the bill would implement health checkups, nutrition consultations, and medical testing. Those supporting the new bill hope that it will prove that California won't accept the industry's dangerous standards.
