Action Alerts

FDA Advisory Committee Concludes Removal of Menthol Cigarettes Would Benefit Public Health

Statement of American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids

WASHINGTON, DC (March 18, 2011) – Finding that the availability of menthol cigarettes increases the number of children and African Americans who smoke, the Food and Drug Administration’s Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee today concluded, “Removal of menthol cigarettes from the marketplace would benefit public health in the United States.”

We strongly support the committee’s findings and conclusions, which are based on an exhaustive review of the scientific evidence regarding the public health impact of menthol cigarettes. We urge the FDA to implement the committee’s recommendation in a way that maximizes the public health benefits.

The committee based its recommendation on findings that menthol cigarettes increase the number of children who experiment with cigarettes and the number of children who become regular smokers, increasing overall youth smoking. It also concluded that the availability of menthol cigarettes reduces smoking cessation, especially among African-Americans, and increases the overall prevalence of smoking among African Americans. It found that “menthol cigarettes are marketed disproportionately to younger smokers” and “disproportionately marketed per capita to African Americans.”

The committee’s conclusions leave no doubt that menthol cigarettes have had a profound adverse impact on public health in the United States, resulting in more smoking and more death and disease from tobacco use. It also leaves no doubt that the tobacco industry is directly responsible for the harm caused by menthol cigarettes because of its targeted marketing of children and African-American and other communities, and its manipulation of menthol cigarettes to appeal to specific target markets.

We applaud and thank the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee for its thorough review of the scientific evidence regarding menthol cigarettes and its carefully considered and science-based recommendation. The committee has done exactly what Congress directed when it enacted the 2009 law granting the FDA authority over tobacco products. Now the FDA must act expeditiously and implement the committee’s recommendation.

The response of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products to the report can be found at:

http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/TobaccoProductsScientificAdvisoryCommittee/ucm247617.htm

Menthol Report – http://www.fda.gov/downloads/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/TobaccoProductsScientificAdvisoryCommittee/UCM247689.pdf

Menthol Report Overview – http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/TobaccoProductsScientificAdvisoryCommittee/ucm247605.htm

Dr. Deyton's Statement – http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/TobaccoProductsScientificAdvisoryCommittee/ucm247617.htm

FAQ Doc – http://www.fda.gov/downloads/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/TobaccoProductsScientificAdvisoryCommittee/UCM247652.pdf

Ending the Tobacco Epidemic, A Tobacco Control Strategic Action Plan for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Dear Colleagues,

Today the Department of Health and Human Services (DHSS) released their plan "Ending the Tobacco Epidemic, A Tobacco Control Strategic Action Plan for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services." This comprehensive plan is available for all to download at: http://www.hhs.gov/ash/initiatives/tobacco/tobaccostrategicplan2010.pdf Please take a look at the Plan and make comments to NLTCN and/or directly to DHSS.

The efforts will include programs to:

Expand the science base for effective tobacco control; conduct surveillance and monitoring of tobacco use and effectiveness of tobacco control efforts.
Build sustainable capacity and infrastructure for comprehensive tobacco control programs.
Regulate the manufacture, marketing and distribution of tobacco products.
Communicate timely, relevant information about tobacco issues to policy makers, health professionals and business leaders, partners and the public.
Deliver tobacco cessation treatment through direct health care services and health insurance.
Foster global tobacco control through surveillance, capacity building and information exchange.

NLTCN was happy to see that many of the plans that the Federal government will working on require inter-governmental coordination and action. We were encouraged by their efforts to reduce tobaco-related disparities through targeted interventions in locations servicing high risk populations including public housing, substance abuse and mental health facilities, correctional institutions, community health centers, Ryan White clinics, rural health clinics and critical access hospitals. We also support more surveillance and data collection in our communities and for low and intermittent smokers.

We expect that DHSS will start making a concerted effort, aside from the current ARRA funding, to fund local, community based efforts to reach Latino and other minority and priority populations. Comprehensive means, also targeted interventions that can reach all communities, where they live, in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner to reduce health disparities.

DHSS, and specificaly FDA also unveiled their proposed graphic warning labels, that will be reviewed to be put on all cigarette packs. They showed today 36 different warning labels from which 9 will be chosen to cover 50% of the cigarrette packs, starting in 2012. A copy of the Federal Register (FR) notice about the proposed rule on the graphic warning labels will be published in the FR tomorrow. Here is a link to the FDA website with information on the proposed graphic warning labels: http://www.fda.gov/TobaccoProducts/Labeling/CigaretteProductWarningLabels/default.htm

The National Latino Tobacco Control Network welcomes both announcements. We urge ALL OF OUR MEMBERS to send comments to the FDA and ask them to include 1-800-QUITNOW in each cigarrette pack as part of these warning labels. Also to ask FDA to put the warning labels in Spanish as well since that way they will reach our communities in both English and Spanish. Putting the 1-800-QUITNOW will allow smokers to see that they can get help quitting tobacco and will likely try to quit. Most, if not all of the state tobacco quitlines now provide services in Spanish to callers that request counseling in Spanish. The more people quit, the more our children and Latino community will benefit.

Jeannette Noltenius, National Director, National Latino Tobacco Control Network (NLTCN)

Estimados Colegas,

El dia de hoy, 10 de noviembre, 2010 el gobierno Federal lanzo su plan estrategico para combatir el tabaquismo en los Estados Unidos " Acabando con la Epidemia del Tabaco". Este documento nos revela que el gobierno federal esta dispuesto a coordinar esfuerzos con todos los departmentos incluyendo educacion y vivienda y muchos mas para eliminar los efectos nefastos en la salud por el usar cigarrillos y otros productos que contienen tabaco. Este plan esta accesible visitando: http://www.hhs.gov/ash/initiatives/tobacco/tobaccostrategicplan2010.pdf Favor revisen el plan y hagan comentarios directamente al Departamento de Salud y/o a Latinos Saludables Sin Tabaco para que podamos seguir abogando porque el gobierno tome acciones y financie programas en la comunidad Latina en todos los estados y en Puerto Rico.

Si bien, Latinos Saludables Sin Tabaco estamos contentos porque este Plan tienen muchas cosas importantes, queremos de nuevo emphatizar que el gobierno federal y los estados deben tener programas integrales que involucren a la comunidad Latina en sus planes. Los Latinos deben ser parte del proceso de politicas que promuevan ambientes libres de humo de tabaco, que instruyan sobre como el subir el precio de los cigarrillos ayuda a que los fumadores consideren dejar el cigarrillo y como en cada comunidad, deben de haber programas en Espanol y culturalmente apropiados que lleven los mensajes a la comunidad y que los servicios de salud deben decirle a los pacientes que el dejar de fumar les beneficia en todo sentido.

Asimismo el gobierno federal a traves del FDA dio a conocer los graficos y advertencias que estaran en el 50% de las cajetillas de cigarrillos comenzando en el 2012. Vimos 36 opciones de las cuales el FDA seleccionara 9 para que sean puestas de maneja intercambiable en todas las cajetillas. Para mayor informacion sobre estas advertencias examinar: http://www.fda.gov/TobaccoProducts/Labeling/CigaretteProductWarningLabels/default.htm.

Latinos Saludables Sin Tabaco solicita que todos los miembros de la Red que hagan comentarios diciendole al FDA que incluya advertencias en Espanol y que agregen el 1-800-QUITNOW en todas las advertensias. Porque? Porque es importante que todos los fumadores sepan que hay lineas telefonicas que les pueden proveer servicios de consejeria y en mucho casos, medicamentos que les ayuden a dejar de fumar. Si cada vez que un fumador ve la cajetilla con la advertencia y con el numero para llamar va a pensar que puede dejar el cigarrillo y que hay servicios que le pueden ayudar, va a dejar! Hay que tomar accion, y hacerse presente en estos ambitos para proteger a nuestra comunidad y para implementar los planes y programas que reduzcan el tabaquismo en nuestras comunidades.

Jeannette Noltenius, Directora Nacional, Latinos Saludables Sin Tabaco (NLTCN)