DENVER, CO – Mind Our Future Colorado today applauded the bipartisan coalition of state attorney generals for securing a landmark settlement of $17.1 billion with Meta, which includes nearly $615 million paid to Colorado over nine years. Meta must also implement vital child safety reforms, including hard caps on daily screen time, elimination of push notifications during school hours, stronger parental controls and age-assurance technology to protect young users on Instagram and Facebook.
The settlement, one of the largest consumer protection agreements in state history, is a direct acknowledgment of what Colorado’s healthcare community has been saying for years: social media platforms have been designed in ways that harm children, and that harm demands accountability.
Mind Our Future Colorado, a coalition of more than 70 healthcare organizations, advocates and community members led by Children’s Hospital Colorado and Healthier Colorado, urges Colorado’s gubernatorial candidates to match this moment with bold action. Today’s settlement is a critical first step, but enforcement and platform accountability alone cannot undo the youth mental health crisis Colorado’s children and families are living through every day. The coalition’s Child and Youth Mental Health Policy Playbook outlines the concrete, systemic investments the next governor must prioritize upon taking office.
“Colorado’s young people are spending four or more hours a day on screens, and young people receive an average of 237 notifications on their phones every day,” said Zach Zaslow, Vice President of Advocacy & Community Health at Children’s Hospital Colorado. “Evidence shows that social media platforms are designed to maximize screen time and expose youth to inappropriate and dangerous content, which is especially risky for kids who are already experiencing mental health difficulties.”
Today’s settlement also carries a critical lesson about sustainable funding. The nearly $615 million settlement over nine years demonstrates exactly the kind of revenue stream that can and should be channeled into youth mental health prevention.
Mind Our Future Colorado’s Child and Youth Mental Health Policy Playbook calls for the establishment of a Thriving Youth Trust Fund, a dedicated, durable funding mechanism for children’s mental health seeded by philanthropic support and bolstered by funding streams such 2 as digital platform fees, social media litigation settlements and enforcement revenue. The Trust would directly support youth mental health needs across school districts, local public health agencies, nonprofit entities and local governments, using a formula weighted for poverty, student mental health needs and rural designation.
“Today’s settlement is proof that when we hold social media companies accountable, real resources can follow,” said Joshua Ewing, Executive Director of Healthier Colorado. “But Colorado can’t afford to let that money disappear into the general fund or be the first thing cut when budgets get tight. Our Policy Playbook lays out a clear path: establish a Thriving Youth Trust Fund that gives communities, schools, families and young people the predictable, multiyear investment they need to build something lasting. The next governor has a once-in-ageneration opportunity to get this right.”
Mind Our Future Colorado calls on all candidates for governor to publicly commit to the policy solutions outlined in the Child and Youth Mental Health Policy Playbook, including the establishment of the Thriving Youth Trust Fund. Colorado’s children cannot wait.