• March 22, 2010

The massive healthcare reform bill passed by Congress and headed for President Obama's signature includes language requiring restaurant chains with 20 or more outlets to provide calorie labeling on menus, menu boards, drive-through displays and vending machines, reports the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).

These chains will also be required to provide additional nutrition information on request. The federal standard will supersede similar regulations already in place or proposed in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, New York City, Philadelphia and a dozen other localities.

The bill exempts small businesses and does not apply to daily or temporary specials and customized orders, according to CSPI. It requires the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to propose specific regulations not later than one year from now. Those regulations will be finalized through a formal rule-making process, and the FDA will be required to make quarterly reports on its progress to Congress.--Karlene Lukovitz