DeWine, Kennedy Inroduce Historic Tobacco Legislation to Prevent Youth Smoking

DEWINE, KENNEDY INTRODUCE HISTORIC TOBACCO LEGISLATION TO PREVENT YOUTH SMOKING

U.S. Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH) today joined with Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) to introduce a bill giving the Food and Drug and Administration (FDA) the authority it needs to regulate the marketing and manufacture of tobacco products in an effort to curb youth smoking.

"The detrimental effects of smoking are widely known," said Senator DeWine. "But many consumers, including smokers, are surprised to learn that no federal agency has the authority to require tobacco companies to list the ingredients that are in their products -- things like trace amounts of arsenic, formaldehyde, and ammonia. No federal agency has the authority to inspect tobacco manufacturers—how the cigarette and smokeless tobacco products are made, whether the manufacturers' machines and equipment are clean. By giving the FDA this authority, in combination with the authority to monitor tobacco advertising targeting America's youths, we will go a long way in combating a public heath problem."

"Smoking is the number one preventable cause of death, yet over 4000 children have their first cigarette every day. We cannot in good conscience allow the Food and Drug Administration, the federal agency most responsible for protecting the public health, to remain powerless to deal with the enormous risks of tobacco, the most deadly of all consumer products. The tobacco industry has a long, dishonorable history of providing misleading information about the health consequences of smoking. The largest disinformation campaign in the history of the corporate world must end," Senator Kennedy said.

The Family Smoking Prevention and Public Health Protection Act would provide the FDA the authority to regulate the sale, marketing and advertising of tobacco products to end practices that target youth and mislead the public. Additionally, it would give the FDA the authority to require tobacco companies to list all the ingredients added by a manufacturer to the tobacco, paper, and filter of a tobacco product. The legislation also would require stronger, more explicit warning labels and would grant the FDA the authority to change labels periodically to ensure the warning remains effective.

All tobacco products entering the market would be subjected to an FDA approval process. For the first time, the FDA would be able to review the health risks associated with tobacco products. The legislation would require manufacturers to submit health information to the FDA about "reduced-risk" tobacco products, which claim to be safer than other tobacco products, before they can be marketed and sold as "reduced-risk" products. The FDA, not the tobacco companies, would have the authority to determine which tobacco products are reduced-risk.

On a national scale, 4,000 children under the age of 18 have their first cigarette every day. 730,000 children become new daily smokers each year; and one-quarter of America's high school students leave high school as smokers. The toll this takes is great, as roughly one-third of all youth smokers will eventually die prematurely from smoking-caused disease.

The Family Smoking Prevention and Public Health Protection Act has the active support of the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Association, and the American Lung Association.

U.S. Representatives Tom Davis (R-VA) and Henry Waxman (D-CA) plan to introduce the Family Smoking Prevention and Public Health Protection Act in the House.

Republican co-sponsors in the Senate are Richard Lugar (R-IN), Susan Collins (R-ME), Gordon Smith (R-OR), John Cornyn (R-TX), John McCain (R-AZ), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Lincoln Chafee (R-RI). Democrat co-sponsors are Tom Harkin (D-IA), Richard Durbin (D-IL), Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), and Jack Reed (D-RI).

http://dewine.senate.gov/