Senate Passes Tobacco Bill at 79-17! June 12
In a recent feature, I shared with you a few things about the pending legislation in the Senate that covered the regulation of tobacco products. Yesterday, in a landmark 79-17 decision, the Senate has passed the bill, giving the Food and Drug Administration the authority to call the shots with regards to tobacco products.
The House passed the legislation in April and with Senate approval, it will now go to the President. The Senate’s passing of the bill is as good as getting a final stamp of approval as President Obama’s acceptance of the bill is considered a no-brainer; the President has already expressed that he intends to sign the bill.
The bill is considered as a win for the health groups and other advocates who have been lobbying for something like this. Debates have been going on for more than a decade, and it has been more than half a century ago that we realized that smoking had links to the occurrence of lung cancer.
Below are the provisions included in the bill:
1. Effective immediately, manufacturers are banned from making claims that imply that certain products have fewer health risks.
2. Aside from menthol, candy- flavored and fruit-flavored cigarettes will be banned over the next three months.
3. Marketing restrictions are to be published by the FDA within 9 months, to take effect after 6 months
4. New warning labels are to be placed on smokeless tobacco products within a year.
5. Tobacco companies are required to reveal the ingredients of their products within a 15-month period.
6. The FDA will release rules that will govern the placement of graphic warnings on cigarette packaging that will cover half the pack within two years, to take effect 15 months later.
There is no telling how these changes will affect the tobacco market. The decision-making process for starting or quitting smoking vary from one individual to the next and involves more than just what one sees on cigarette packages, although these visual presentations may indeed send subliminal messages that we do not readily realize, if at all.
Tags: cigarette regulation, lung cancer, no smoking, senate approves tobacco bill, tobacco regulation
smokekiller Jun 26
Ecigs are the way to go if you really want to stop smoking or if you want a healthy alternative to smoking.
ciggy Jun 26
To all smokers out there I’d just like to say: Try ecigarettes and get rid of your dirty habit, I did it and I was able to stop smoking.
Fiona Aug 30
I thought I wasnt going to like this blog but more I read the more I liked it.