Many candies contain Red No. 40, Yellow No. 5 and Yellow No. 6. They are among the food colorings banned in West Virginia by a measure signed in March. Such bans are just one example of how the “Make America Healthy Again” movement has taken hold in state legislatures. (Photo by Carol Johnson/Stateline)
The Article first appeared on KFF Health News.
When one of Adam Burkhammer’s foster children struggled with hyperactivity, the West Virginia legislator and his wife decided to change their diet and remove all foods that contained synthetic dyes.
“We have seen a turnaround in his behavior and in our behavior with our other children,” said Burkhammer, who and his wife have adopted or fostered 10 children. “There are real impacts on real children.”
The Republican put his experience into legislation and supported a bill to do so ban seven dyes from food sold in the state. It became law in March, making West Virginia the first state to implement such a ban on all foods.
The bill was one of a series of government efforts to regulate synthetic dyes. In 2025, approximately 75 bills on food coloring were introduced in 37 states the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Chemical dyes and nutrition are just one part of the broader “Make America Healthy Again” agenda. The MAHA ideas, promoted by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., have made deep inroads at the state level with mighty Republican—and in some places Democratic—support. The $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program — created last year as part of Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act to expand access to health care in rural areas — provides incentives for states that implement MAHA policies.
Federal and state officials are seeking a sweeping change in health policy, including rolling back routine vaccinations and expanding the exploit of drugs like ivermectin for treatments beyond their approved exploit. State legislatures have introduced dozens of them Bills targeting vaccinesfluoridated water and PFAS, a group of compounds known as “forever chemicals” that have been linked to cancer and other health problems.
In addition to West Virginia, six other states have targeted food dyes with fresh laws or executive orders, requiring warning labels on foods containing certain dyes or banning the sale of such products in schools. California has had a law regulating food colorings since 2023.
Most synthetic dyes are used to color food has been around for decades. Some clinical studies have found a connection between their exploit and Hyperactivity in children. And in early 2025, in the final days of President Joe Biden’s term, the Food and Drug Administration the exploit of a dye is prohibited known as Red No. 3.
Major food companies including Nestle, Hershey and PepsiCo have joined in and promised to eliminate at least some color additives from food in the next year or two.
“We expect the momentum we saw in 2025 to continue in 2026, with a particular focus on ingredient safety and transparency,” said John Hewitt, senior vice president of state affairs for the Consumer Brands Association, a trade group for food manufacturers.
Last summer, the group called on its members to do so voluntarily refrain from using state-certified artificial colors phase out their products by the end of 2027.
“The state laws are what actually motivate companies to avoid dyes,” he said Jensen JoseRegulatory Counsel for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit health advocacy group.
Andy Baker Whitethe senior director of state health policy at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, said the bipartisan support for bills targeting food dyes and highly processed foods strikes him as unusual. Several red states have proposed legislation modeled on California’s 2023 law, which bans four food additives.
“It’s not often that states like California and West Virginia find themselves at the forefront of an issue together,” Baker-White said.
Although Democrats have joined Republicans in some of these efforts, Kennedy remains at the forefront of the agenda. He appeared with Texas officials as the state passed a package of food laws, including one that bars people who participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – SNAP, or food stamps – from using their benefits to buy candy or sugary drinks. In December, the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved a similar procedure Six states applied for exemptions. Eighteen states blocks SNAP purchases this article in 2026.
There will definitely be more. The Rural Health Transformation Program also provides incentives to states that have implemented restrictions on SNAP.
“There are real and concrete impacts when rural health dollars give points for changes to SNAP eligibility or SNAP definitions,” Baker-White said.
In October, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill that states: legal definition for highly processed foods and will ban them from schools. It’s a move that may be replicated in other states in 2026, while also giving rise to litigation. In December, San Francisco District Attorney David Chiu said sued major food companiesand accuses them of selling “harmful and addictive” products. The lawsuit names specific brands – including cereal, pizza, sodas and potato chips – and links them to stern health problems.
Kennedy has it too blames highly processed foods in chronic illnesses. But even proponents of efforts to address nutritional problems disagree about which foods to target. MAHA supporters on the right have not focused on sugar and sodium as much as policymakers on the left. The parties also clashed over the endorsements of some Republicans Raw milkwhich can spread harmful germs, and the consumption of saturated fatwhat contributes to it heart disease.
Policymakers expect further flashpoints. Passes by the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Complicating access to vaccines has led blue states to find ways to diversify their own standards from federal recommendations, with 15 Democratic governors announcing one New Public Health Alliance in October. Meanwhile, more red states could eliminate employee vaccination requirements; Idaho made them illegal. And Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is pushing for it Abolition of school vaccination requirements.
Even though Kennedy supports eliminating artificial colors, the Environmental Protection Agency has done so relaxed restrictions on chemicals and pesticides, prompting MAHA activists spread an online petition calls on President Donald Trump to fire EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin.
Congress has yet to act on most MAHA proposals. But state lawmakers are poised to address many of them.
“If we are honest, the American people have lost trust in some of our federal institutions, whether FDA or CDC,” said Burkhammer, the West Virginia lawmaker. “We will step up as states and do the right thing.”
KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism on health issues and is one of KFF’s core operating programs – an independent source of health policy research, polling and journalism. Find out more about KFF.
This story was originally produced by State borderwhich is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network that includes West Virginia Watch, and is a 501c(3) public charity supported by grants and a coalition of donors.
