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Advocating to End Inhumane Cosmetics Testing on Animals

Progress Continues in the US and Abroad

Although non-animal alternatives to animal testing are readily available, unnecessary and inhumane testing is still being conducted on rabbits, mice, rats and guinea pigs by companies manufacturing lipstick, deodorant, shampoo and other beauty and personal care products.

Safe cosmetics can be humanely created using thousands of approved existing ingredients, and several non-animal methods are already available to test new ingredients. These advanced technologies are often more reliable predictors of safety than archaic animal tests.

Steady progress is being made on both the state and national levels, and HSVMA continues to support these efforts. Eight US states have already banned cosmetics testing: California in 2018, Illinois and Nevada in 2019, and Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia in 2021.

More than 40 countries—including Australia, India, Israel, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, and every European Union country—already prohibit or limit this retrograde practice, and last year Mexico became the first North American country to do so. 

Unfortunately, the US has not yet done so at the federal level. However, passage of the federal Humane Cosmetics Act, introduced in the last Congress and reintroduced in December in the current 117th Congress, would change that by prohibiting animal testing for all cosmetics manufactured in the United States. It would also prohibit the import of cosmetics that have been tested on animals anywhere else in the world. 

Thanks to strong bipartisan support, unprecedented support from the cosmetics industry itself, and strong public and consumer support, HSVMA and our allied advocates hope that our active support will make 2022 the year the federal Humane Cosmetics Act is finally enacted.

We need your help to pass this critical animal welfare legislation—please follow these few short steps to take action:  

  1. Confirm who your U.S. Representative and both your U.S Senators are and their numbers here.
  1. Check to see if your U.S. Representative is one of the many cosponsors here. If your Representative is a cosponsor, a quick thank you call or email goes a very long way.
  1. Call or email your U.S. Representative if they are not a cosponsor. 
Here’s a script you can personalize:
My name is <your name> and I am a veterinary professional and a voting constituent in <your city>. I am calling to urge Representative ____ to cosponsor the Humane Cosmetics Act, HR 6207. Forty-one countries and 8 U.S. states have already passed laws to end cosmetics testing on animals and it’s time for the U.S. to do the same. The cosmetics industry itself has worked with animal protection groups to propose the language for this bill. I urge Representative ____  to cosponsor HR 6207 as soon as possible to end this cruelty. Thank you.  
  1. Call or email both of your U.S. Senators (there is no need to call Senators Booker (NJ), Portman (OH), Hickenlooper (CO), Collins (ME), and Rosen (NV), as they are all already sponsors; although a thank you email or call would be helpful).
Here’s a script you can personalize:
My name is <your name> and I am a veterinary professional and a voting constituent in <your city>. I am calling to urge Senator ____ to cosponsor the Humane Cosmetics Act, S.3357. Forty-one countries and 8 U.S. states have already passed laws to end cosmetics testing on animals and it’s time for the U.S. to do the same. The cosmetics industry itself has worked with animal protection groups to propose the language for this bill. Please urge Senator ____  to cosponsor S.3357 as soon as possible to end this cruelty. Thank you.
 

You can learn more about this bill at Cosmetics Testing FAQ as well as  Humane Cosmetics Act Fact Sheet 117th Congress  We appreciate your collaborative advocacy.