Jennifer Pomeranz
Jennifer L Pomeranz
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Associate Professor of Public Health Policy and Management
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Professional overview
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Professor Jennifer Pomeranz is a public health lawyer who researches policy and legal options to address the food environment, obesity, products that cause public harm, and social injustice that lead to health disparities.
Prior to joining the NYU faculty, Professor Pomeranz was an Assistant Professor at the School of Public Health at Temple University and in the Center for Obesity Research and Education at Temple. She was previously the Director of Legal Initiatives at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University. She has also authored numerous peer-reviewed and law review journal articles and a book, Food Law for Public Health, published by Oxford University Press in 2016.
Professor Pomeranz leads the Public Health Policy Research Lab and regularly teaches Public Health Law and Food Policy for Public Health.
"Policy is so important because it is the most effective way to influence public health. I got into public health to change the world -- to improve health and address inequities.”
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Education
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BA, History, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MIJD, Juris Doctorate, Cornell Law School, Ithaca, NYMPH, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA
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Areas of research and study
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Diet-related diseaseProducts that cause harmPublic Health LawPublic Health PolicySocial injustices that create health disparities
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Publications
Publications
BMI and Healthcare Cost Impact of Eliminating Tax Subsidy for Advertising Unhealthy Food to Youth
AbstractSonneville, K. R., Long, M. W., Ward, Z. J., Resch, S. C., Wang, Y. C., Pomeranz, J. L., Moodie, M. L., Carter, R., Sacks, G., Swinburn, B. A., & Gortmaker, S. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
American journal of preventive medicineVolume
49Issue
1Page(s)
124-134AbstractIntroduction: Food and beverage TV advertising contributes to childhood obesity. The current tax treatment of advertising as an ordinary business expense in the U.S. subsidizes marketing of nutritionally poor foods and beverages to children. This study models the effect of a national intervention that eliminates the tax subsidy of advertising nutritionally poor foods and beverages on TV to children aged 2-19 years. Methods: We adapted and modified the Assessing Cost Effectiveness framework and methods to create the Childhood Obesity Intervention Cost Effectiveness Study model to simulate the impact of the intervention over the 2015-2025 period for the U.S. population, including short-term effects on BMI and 10-year healthcare expenditures. We simulated uncertainty intervals (UIs) using probabilistic sensitivity analysis and discounted outcomes at 3% annually. Data were analyzed in 2014. Results: We estimated the intervention would reduce an aggregate 2.13 million (95% UI=0.83 million, 3.52 million) BMI units in the population and would cost $1.16 per BMI unit reduced (95% UI=$0.51, $2.63). From 2015 to 2025, the intervention would result in $352 million (95% UI=$138 million, $581 million) in healthcare cost savings and gain 4,538 (95% UI=1,752, 7,489) quality-adjusted life-years. Conclusions: Eliminating the tax subsidy of TV advertising costs for nutritionally poor foods and beverages advertised to children and adolescents would likely be a cost-saving strategy to reduce childhood obesity and related healthcare expenditures.Defining Commercial Speech in the Context of Food Marketing
AbstractPomeranz, J. L., & Adler, S. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
Journal of Law, Medicine and EthicsVolume
43Page(s)
40-43AbstractThe regulation of food marketing is a strategy to address obesity. Marketers engage in both commercial speech, which receives some First Amendment protection, and non-speech activities that fall outside of the First Amendment's realm; no marketing practice constitutes fully protected speech. We explore these distinctions in the public health context.Implications of the supplemental nutrition assistance program tax exemption on sugar-sweetened beverage taxes
AbstractPomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
American journal of public healthVolume
105Issue
11Page(s)
2191-2193AbstractUS state and local governments are debating sugar-sweetened beverage excise taxes to support public health. A related issue is whether such taxes would apply to beverage purchases made by Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants. Federal law proscribes states from collecting excise taxes on SNAP purchases, but the law is confined to taxes at the point of sale. I provide legal analysis and recommendations for policymakers to enact taxes that are not subject to the SNAP tax exemption to potentially deter consumption by all consumers.Large-scale automated analysis of news media: A novel computational method for obesity policy research
AbstractHamad, R., Pomeranz, J. L., Siddiqi, A., & Basu, S. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
ObesityVolume
23Issue
2Page(s)
296-300AbstractObjective Analyzing news media allows obesity policy researchers to understand popular conceptions about obesity, which is important for targeting health education and policies. A persistent dilemma is that investigators have to read and manually classify thousands of individual news articles to identify how obesity and obesity-related policy proposals may be described to the public in the media. A machine learning method called "automated content analysis" that permits researchers to train computers to "read" and classify massive volumes of documents was demonstrated. Methods 14,302 newspaper articles that mentioned the word "obesity" during 2011-2012 were identified. Four states that vary in obesity prevalence and policy (Alabama, California, New Jersey, and North Carolina) were examined. The reliability of an automated program to categorize the media's framing of obesity as an individual-level problem (e.g., diet) and/or an environmental-level problem (e.g., obesogenic environment) was tested. Results The automated program performed similarly to human coders. The proportion of articles with individual-level framing (27.7-31.0%) was higher than the proportion with neutral (18.0-22.1%) or environmental-level framing (16.0-16.4%) across all states and over the entire study period (P- <- 0.05). Conclusions A novel approach to the study of how obesity concepts are communicated and propagated in news media was demonstrated.Legal strategies to address America’s processed food problem: from public health prevention to state and local preemption
Pomeranz, J. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
Duke Forum for Law & Social ChangeOutstanding questions in first amendment law related to food labeling disclosure requirements for health
AbstractPomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
Health AffairsVolume
34Issue
11Page(s)
1986-1992AbstractThe federal and state governments are increasingly focusing on food labeling as a method to support good health. Many such laws are opposed by the food industry and may be challenged in court, raising the question of what is legally feasible. This article analyzes outstanding questions in First Amendment law related to commercial disclosure requirements and conducts legal analysis and policy evaluation for three current policies. These include the Food and Drug Administration's draft regulation requiring an added sugar disclosure on the Nutrition Facts panel, California's proposed sugar-sweetened beverage safety warning label bill, and Vermont's law requiring labels of genetically engineered food to disclose this information. I recommend several methods for policy makers to enact food labeling laws within First Amendment parameters, including imposing factual commercial disclosure requirements, disclosing the government entity issuing a warning, collecting evidence, and identifying legitimate governmental interests.Participatory workplace wellness programs: Reward, penalty, and regulatory conflict
AbstractPomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
Milbank QuarterlyVolume
93Issue
2Page(s)
301-318AbstractPolicy Points: Workplace wellness programs that provide incentives for completing a health risk assessment are a form of participatory programs. There are legal and ethical concerns when employers assess penalties for not completing a health risk assessment, raising questions about the voluntariness of such a program. The Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services' 2013 regulations for participatory programs and employers' current practices conflict with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's prevailing interpretation of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Context In keeping with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Congress revised the law related to workplace wellness programs. In June 2013, the Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services passed the final regulations, updating their 2006 regulatory framework. Participatory programs that reward the completion of a health risk assessment are now the most common type of wellness program in the United States. However, legal and ethical concerns emerge when employers utilize incentives that raise questions about the voluntariness of such programs. At issue is that under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, employers cannot require health-related inquiries and exams. Methods To analyze the current interpretation of the ADA, I conducted research on both LexisNexis and federal agency websites. The resulting article evaluates the differences in the language of Congress's enabling legislation and the federal departments' regulations and how they may conflict with the ADA. It also reviews the federal government's authority to address both the legal conflict and ethical concerns related to nonvoluntary participatory programs. Findings Employers' practices and the federal departments' regulations conflict with the current interpretation of the ADA by permitting employers to penalize employees who do not complete a health risk assessment. The departments' regulations may be interpreted as conflicting with Congress's legislation, which mentions penalties only for health-contingent wellness programs. Furthermore, the regulatory protections for employees applicable to health-contingent wellness programs do not apply to participatory programs. Conclusions Either Congress or the federal agencies should address the conflict among employers' practices, the wellness regulations, and the ADA and also consider additional protections for employees. Employers can avoid ethical and legal complications by offering voluntary programs with positive incentives.Policies to promote healthy portion sizes for children
AbstractPomeranz, J. L., & Miller, D. P. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
AppetiteVolume
88Page(s)
50-58AbstractPeople of all ages are increasingly consuming larger portions of food. Governments worldwide are involved in the regulation of many aspects of the food supply; however, policies and programs related to serving sizes for children vary or are not clearly communicated. This paper reviews U.S. federal and state government recommendations, policies, and laws related to serving size for children and suggests directions for future policy objectives and outstanding research needed to support the enactment of laws based on the best science. Specifically, this paper reviews federal dietary recommendations and requirements for nutrition programs, packaged food labels and restaurant menus; state regulation of retail environments and child care settings; food companies' self-regulatory options; and directions for future research and policy initiatives. The paper concludes that there are many opportunities for government to revise its policies and programs to better support healthy portion sizes for children and create a more transparent information environment to assist caretakers to do the same.Preemption and local food and agriculture policies
Neff, R., Pomeranz, J., & Rutkow, L. (n.d.). In Introduction to the US food system (First, 1–).Publication year
2015Public health and legal arguments in favor of a policy to cap the portion sizes of sugar-sweetened beverages
AbstractRoberto, C. A., & Pomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
American journal of public healthVolume
105Issue
11Page(s)
2183-2190AbstractIn 2012, the New York City Board of Health passed a regulation prohibiting the sale of sugar-sweetened beverages in containers above 16 ounces in the city's food service establishments. The beverage industry and various retailers sued the city to prevent enforcement of the law, arguing that the board had overstepped its authority. In June 2014, the state's highest court agreed and struck down the regulation. Here we report the results of a content analysis of the public testimony related to the case submitted to the New York City Department of Mental Health and Hygiene. We identified major arguments in support of and against the sugar-sweetened beverage portion limit policy. We offer legal and scientific arguments that challenge the major anti-policy arguments and contend that, although this policy was not implemented in New York City, it can be legally pursued by other legislatures.Regulatory strategies for preventing obesity improving public health
Gill, T., Pomeranz, J., Roberto, C. A., & Soo, J. (n.d.). In Managing and Preventing Obesity (1–).Publication year
2015Page(s)
277-799States variations in the provision of bariatric surgery under affordable care act exchanges
AbstractYang, Y. T., & Pomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
Surgery for Obesity and Related DiseasesVolume
11Issue
3Page(s)
715-720AbstractThe Affordable Care Act (ACA) attempts to reduce healthcare costs while simultaneously providing the means for more Americans to obtain health insurance. Among other things, the ACA expands preventative care for obesity by mandating screening and counseling. However, it permits the states to determine whether to mandate treatments for inclusion in plans offered on the state-run exchanges. Bariatric surgery is a highly cost-effective treatment for obesity, yet states have taken varying stances on whether to mandate its inclusion. In light of the rising cost of obesity and resulting burden placed on the federal government and the economy, this article advocates a comparable mandatory inclusion of bariatric surgery in all plans offered on state and federally run exchanges.The affordable care act and state coverage of clinical preventive health services for working-age adults
AbstractPomeranz, J. L., & Yang, Y. T. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
Journal of Public Health Management and PracticeVolume
21Issue
1Page(s)
87-95AbstractSignificant public health challenges facing the United States stem from preventable disease. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act dedicated substantial resources toward prevention. Among other reforms, the Affordable Care Act requires Medicaid and private health insurers to cover clinical preventive services for adults, pursuant to recommendations by the U.S. Preventive Service Task Force. This article examines the infrastructure upon which these recommendations are based, the requirements related to risk factors for leading causes of preventable disease in adults associated with tobacco and alcohol use, unhealthy diet, and inactivity, and coverage requirements for private plans and Medicaid. The article provides and assesses data comparing the health statuses of populations in and preventive services offered by states taking the Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion versus those in states declining to expand coverage. The article suggests legislative and other methods to increase preventive clinical service requirements and notes outstanding issues for future research.The dangerousmix of adolescents and dietary supplements forweight loss andmuscle building: Legal strategies for state action
AbstractPomeranz, J. L., Barbosa, G., Killian, C., & Austin, S. B. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
Journal of Public Health Management and PracticeVolume
21Issue
5Page(s)
496-503AbstractAdolescents use dietary supplements marketed for weight loss or muscle building, but these are not recommended by physicians. These products are often ineffective, adulterated, mislabeled, or have unclear dosing recommendations, and consumers have suffered injury and death as a consequence. When Congress passed the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, it stripped the Food and Drug Administration of its premarket authority, rendering regulatory controls too weak to adequately protect consumers. State government intervention is thus warranted. This article reviews studies reporting on Americans' use of dietary supplements marketed for weight loss or muscle building, notes the particular dangers these products pose to the youth, and suggests that states can build on their historical enactment of regulatory controls for products with potential health consequences to protect the public and especially young people from unsafe and mislabeled dietary supplements.The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Analysis of Program Administration and Food Law Definitions
AbstractPomeranz, J. L., & Chriqui, J. F. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
American journal of preventive medicineVolume
49Issue
3Page(s)
428-436AbstractUnder the current version of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), participants can purchase virtually any food or beverage (collectively, food). Research indicates that SNAP recipients may have worse dietary quality than income-eligible nonparticipants. Policymakers have urged the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to pilot SNAP purchasing restrictions intended to support a healthier diet, and state legislators have proposed similar bills. The USDA rejected these invitations, stating that it would be administratively and logistically difficult to differentiate among products, amid other concerns. However, the USDA's Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) do just that. Further, state governments define and differentiate among foods and beverages for tax purposes. This paper reviews several factors intended to inform future policy decisions: the science indicating that SNAP recipients have poorer diet quality than income-eligible nonparticipants; the public's support for revising the SNAP program; federal, state, and city legislators' formal proposals to amend SNAP based on nutrition criteria and the USDA's public position in opposition to these proposals; state bills to amend eligible foods purchasable with SNAP benefits; state retail food tax laws; and the retail administration and program requirements for both WIC and SNAP. The paper finds that the government has a clear ability to align SNAP benefits with nutrition science and operationalize this into law.Can government regulate portion sizes?
Pomeranz, J. L., & Brownell, K. D. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
New England Journal of MedicineVolume
371Issue
21Page(s)
1956-1958Litigation to Address Misleading Food Label Claims and the Role of the State Attorneys General
Pomeranz, J. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
Regent University Law ReviewPage(s)
421-455Making the workplace a more effective site for prevention of noncommunicable diseases in adults
AbstractTryon, K., Bolnick, H., Pomeranz, J. L., Pronk, N., & Yach, D. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
Journal of Occupational and Environmental MedicineVolume
56Issue
11Page(s)
1137-1144AbstractObjective: Efforts to realize the potential of disease prevention in the United States have fallen behind those of peer countries, and workplace disease prevention is a major gap. This article investigates the reasons for this gap.Methods: Literature review and expert discussions.Results: Obstacles to effective use of workplace disease prevention include limited leadership and advocacy, poor alignment of financial incentives, limitations in research quality and investment, regulation that does not support evidence-based practice, and a dearth of community-employer partnerships.Conclusions: We make recommendations to address these obstacles, such as the inclusion of health metrics in corporate reporting, making the workplace a central component of the strategy to combat the effect of noncommunicable diseases, and linking prevention directly benefit businesses' bottom lines.Sugary beverage tax policy: Lessons learned from tobacco
AbstractPomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
American journal of public healthVolume
104Issue
3Page(s)
e13-e15AbstractExcise taxes on sugary beverages have been proposed as a method to replicate the public health success of tobacco control and to generate revenue. As policymakers increase efforts to pass sugary beverage taxes, they cananticipate thatmanufacturers will emulate the strategies employed by tobacco companies in their attempts to counteract the impact of such taxes. Policymakers should therefore consider 2 complementary laws-minimum price laws and prohibitions on coupons and discounting-to accomplish the intended price increase.The Impact of ‘Food Addiction’ on Food Policy
Pomeranz, J. L., & Roberto, C. A. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
Current Addiction ReportsVolume
1Issue
2Page(s)
102-108The need for public policies to promote healthier food consumption: A comment on Wansink and Chandon (2014)
AbstractRoberto, C. A., Pomeranz, J. L., & Fisher, J. O. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
Journal of Consumer PsychologyVolume
24Issue
3Page(s)
438-445AbstractCurrent approaches to addressing obesity have fallen short. This is largely due to the many environmental forces that undermine people's self-regulatory capacity to be personally responsible for their food choices. Novel insights from the social sciences are needed to inform voluntary, health-promoting actions by companies, institutions, and citizens as well as the design of public health policies. Voluntary interventions that rely on nudges should complement traditional public health strategies such as taxation and restriction of child-targeted marketing in schools. In this commentary, we discuss four food policy issues that would benefit from consumer psychology research: (a) the restriction of food marketing to children, (b) provision of nutrition information through food labels, (c) improving school food environments, and (d) placing limits on portion sizes. Identifying effective solutions for obesity will require approaches that integrate psychological, public health, and legal perspectives and methods.The trans-fat ban - Food regulation and long-term health
Brownell, K. D., & Pomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
New England Journal of MedicineVolume
370Issue
19Page(s)
1773-1775Workplace wellness programs: How regulatory flexibility might undermine success
AbstractPomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
American journal of public healthVolume
104Issue
11Page(s)
2052-2056AbstractThe Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act revised the law related to workplace wellness programs, which have become part of the nation's broader health strategy. Health-contingent programs are required to be reasonably designed. However, the regulatory requirements are lax and might undermine program efficacy in terms of both health gains and financial return. I propose a method for the government to support a best-practices approach by considering an accreditation or certification process. Additionally I discuss the need for program evaluation and the potential for employers to be subject to litigation if programs are not carefully implemented.A comprehensive strategy to overhaul FDA authority for misleading food labels.
AbstractPomeranz, J. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Journal title
Unknown JournalVolume
39Issue
4Page(s)
617-647AbstractThe modern food environment is considered a primary driver of obesity and other nutrition-related chronic diseases. A significant contribution to this environment is the proliferation of claims on food packaging that provides a misleading picture of a product's healthfulness. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is the agency responsible for food labels but it lacks the regulatory authority and adequate resources to address the majority of questionable labeling practices. The FDA's current system of enforcement is thus essentially based on voluntary compliance and consumer- and manufacturer-initiated litigation has not successfully filled the regulatory gap. This manuscript reviews the current state of food labeling claims and the FDA's inadequate authority over misbranded food products. It analyzes competing views on regulatory compliance strategies and argues that a regulatory overhaul consistent with the best science and the First Amendment is necessary. With increased resources and authority, the FDA can meet current public health challenges and adequately ensure that labels are clear and consumers are properly informed and protected.Assessing the impact of federal and state preemption in public health: A framework for decision makers
AbstractPertschuk, M., Pomeranz, J. L., Aoki, J. R., Larkin, M. A., & Paloma, M. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Journal title
Journal of Public Health Management and PracticeVolume
19Issue
3Page(s)
213-219AbstractIn the United States, state and local public health policies play a fundamental role in innovation and progress. Preemption, by which Congress or the state legislatures limit the authority of lower jurisdictions, can eliminate the benefits of state and local policy initiatives. Preemption can also have a negative impact on enforcement, civic engagement, and grassroots movement building.In June 2011, the Institute of Medicine published a groundbreaking report on policy and law that considered preemption as a crosscutting issue in public health. The Institute of Medicine recommended that federal and state policy makers "should set minimum standards..allowing states and localities to further protect the health and safety of their inhabitants," and "should avoid language that hinders public health action."The Preemption Framework is a tool to SUPPL.ort effective decision making by helping the public health field anticipate, assess, and, if necessary, counter preemptive policy proposals. We review the consequences of preemption, including its potential impact on grassroots public health movements, and propose practical questions and considerations to assist decision makers in responding to preemptive proposals.