Congress Urges US Government to Suspend Study on Alcohol Health Risks, Citing Concerns of Anti-Alcohol Bias

Over 100 members of Congress penned a letter to encourage the government to cancel a study, claiming it was run by anti-alcohol activists. (Photo: AP Photo/J. David Ake)

The New York Post reported on Thursday that over 100 U.S. Congress members signed a letter urging the government to terminate a study about alcohol’s health risks, citing concerns of bias. The outlet reported that the study is being performed by a group of “anti-alcohol activists.”

Reps. Nicole Malliotakis and Mike Lawler expressed in the letter concerns about the fact the company conducting the study is called the Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking.

“We believe a dual track of work is duplicative and have serious concerns that ICCPUD is deviating from its primary mission of reducing and preventing underage drinking,” the letter read. “As mandated through the enactment of the Sober Truth on Preventing Underage Drinking (STOP) Act, ICCPUD has been directed to focus on underage drinking. Congress has reauthorized the legislation and reaffirmed ICCPUD’s mission on multiple occasions. Based on the limited information provided on its website, it also appears that ICCPUD plans to conduct its own research and offer recommendations on adult consumption on an ongoing basis.”

The letter claims that members of the panel were not “appropriately vetted for conflicts of interests” and that the “secretive process” of the work being performed by ICCPUD “jeopardizes the credibility of ICCPUD and its ability to continue its primary role of helping the nation prevent underage drinking.”

The Post reported that many of the lawmakers who signed the letter came from states known for beer, wine and liquor production, like California, Washington and Kentucky. Members of Congress began to question the study once they realized who was working on the panel.

Dr. Tim Naimi happened to be one of the individuals working on the study, and The Post reported Naimi recommended that adult men drink no more than one drink a day, slashing the two-drink per day rule from the US Government’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans that dates back to the 1980s.

The Post claims that another panel member is a scientist who runs a World Health Organization facility on addiction. The World Health Organization connection may likely be what raised red flags for Congress members, as in February 2023, Dr. Carina Ferreira-Borges, the regional advisor for Alcohol and Illicit Drugs at the WHO’s Regional Office for Europe claimed that no level of alcohol was safe for consumption.

As for the recent study that could potentially influence the alcohol guidelines in the United States, bigwigs within the beverage industry expressed concern for the study and its potential revised guidelines.

“There would be a ripple effect if the guidelines change and consumers could reduce their consumption of alcohol,” Executive Director of Wine America Michael Kaiser said, according to The Post. “People will buy fewer bottles for consumption at home and might wait until they go out on the weekend.”