government
FDA strengthens regulations on tobacco products
Posted April 9, 2012
The Food and Drug Administration will require tobacco companies to report quantities of harmful chemicals in cigarettes and smokeless tobacco, and to comply with advertising standards for products that are considered to be less harmful than others, according to new rules published on March 30.
The FDA has identified 93 harmful ingredients that tobacco companies must report. The FDA would publicize what is in tobacco products and then begin to set standards protecting public health, said Lawrence R. Deyton, MD, MSPH, director of the FDA Center for Tobacco Products.
The agency also established criteria for selling modified-risk tobacco products, which claim to reduce harm and the risk of tobacco-related disease. Companies would be required to meet certain criteria and apply to the FDA before they can advertise a product as less harmful.
“We are forging new territory to ensure that tobacco companies provide accurate information and do not mislead American consumers,” said FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, MD. “We are committed to stopping such practices that may cause people to start or continue using tobacco products that could lead to preventable disease and death.”
Tobacco manufacturers have sued the government over some of the new federal regulations on tobacco, which were approved by Congress. Those lawsuits are pending.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/04/09/gvbf0409.htm.
