On March 18, 2010, the FDA Center for Tobacco Products issued a new rule to protect kids from tobacco addiction and premature death from tobacco use.

The new rule becomes effective June 22, 2010 and prohibits the sale, distribution, and marketing of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco to youth, including:

Sale and Distribution Regulations

• Prohibits the sale of cigarettes or smokeless tobacco to people younger than 18.
• Prohibits the sale of cigarette packages with fewer than 20 cigarettes.
• Prohibits the sale of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco in vending machines, self-service displays, or other impersonal modes of sales, except in very limited situations.
• Restricts free samples of cigarettes or smokeless tobacco products.
  Marketing Regulations
• Prohibits tobacco brand name sponsorship of any athletic, musical, or other social or cultural event, or any team or entry in those events.
• Prohibits gifts or other items in exchange for buying cigarettes or smokeless tobacco products.
• Requires that audio ads use only words with no music or sound effects.
• Prohibits the sale or distribution of items, such as hats and tee shirts, with tobacco brands or logos.

For more information, visit: www.fda.gov/ProtectingKidsFromTobacco

GET RICH: Quit Smoking

IF YOU'RE LOOKING for reasons to quit smoking, we've got $5,977 of 'em.
That is, $5,977 in savings each year. And we're not just talking about the annual cost of cigarettes to fuel that pack-a-day habit, which at an average cost of $4.36 per pack will set you back $1,591.40 annually. We calculated other ways you'll save — most likely in areas you never thought about. (How much you specifically will save will obviously depend on your situation.)

"The savings on the cost of buying the cigarettes is relatively minor," says Frank A. Sloan, author of "Price of Smoking," and the director of the Center for Health Policy, Law and Management at Duke University. Smokers spend more on health care and earn less from Social Security (sadly, early death leads to fewer Social Security payments). Figuring in the varied long-term costs, he says, each pack actually costs a smoker $40.

Click here to read the entire article.

FDA NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Aug. 25, 2009
Media Inquiries: Kathleen K. Quinn, 301-796-4617, Kathleen.Quinn@fda.hhs.gov
Consumer Inquiries: 888-INFO-FDA

FDA Moves Forward on Implementation of Tobacco Law

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced an action regarding the implementation of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. The Agency has officially established the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC).

The Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee is tasked with providing advice, information, and recommendations to the Commissioner of Food and Drugs on health and other issues relating to tobacco products. The committee will be asked to consider a variety of topics including:

--identifying the effects of the alteration of the nicotine yields from tobacco products;
--reporting on the impact of the use of menthol in cigarettes on the public health; and
--advising on an application for modified risk (use of descriptors such as “light”) tobacco product.

Click here to read more...

A Broken Promise to Our Children:
- The 1998 State Tobacco Settlement Eleven Years Later
- A Report on the States’ Allocation of the Tobacco Settlement Dollars
- Click here to read more...

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