Congress Readies Bill to Give FDA Tobacco Oversight

Critics and supporters debate the pluses and minuses of the legislation.

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
Wednesday, July 25, 2007; 12:00 AM

Copyright © 2007 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.

WEDNESDAY, July 25 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Congress is poised to pass a bill that would give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the authority to regulate tobacco.

But experts are divided on whether the bill, which is expected to be passed Thursday, will have significant impact on tobacco use, a habit that kills some 436,000 Americans a year -- nearly one in five deaths annually.

Identical bills in the House of Representatives and the Senate would grant the FDA the same authority over tobacco that it has over drugs, medical devices and many foods. The bill would allow the agency, which has come under fire in recent years for its monitoring of the drug industry, to regulate the levels of tar, nicotine and other harmful ingredients in cigarettes and smoke. That smoke contains some 4,000 chemicals, more than 40 of which are known to cause cancer.

The bills would also strengthen bans against tobacco advertising and not allow tobacco manufactures to make false claims or use terms such as "light" and "low tar." They would also ban cigarette sales to minors and strengthen warning labels.

In an amendment added Wednesday, the Senate bill would also require that cigarette packs carry graphic warnings that illustrate the health risks of smoking. The warnings would be similar to those already used in Canada and elsewhere, the Associated Press reported.

However, the bills would not require FDA approval of tobacco products already on the market; only new products would need FDA approval before they could be sold to consumers. In addition, the FDA would not have the authority to increase the legal age for buying cigarettes or restrict where cigarettes are sold.

As a result, the proposed legislation has supporters as well as detractors.

"I think the bill is strong, it has the potential to bring about the most fundamental changes in how tobacco products are manufactured and marketed that we have ever seen," said Matthew L. Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "The bill could provide the FDA authority that could save millions of lives."