FDA Tobacco Bill Signed Into Law

At a Rose Garden ceremony, President Barack Obama signed into law long-sought legislation that will give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the power to regulate tobacco products, the Associated Press reported June 22.

“The decades-long effort to protect our children from the harmful effects of tobacco has emerged victorious,” said Obama, who said that the legislation made important strides toward preventing tobacco marketing aimed at getting kids hooked on smoking at a young age.

“I know — I was one of these teenagers,” Obama said. “So I know how difficult it can be to break this habit when it’s been with you for a long time.” Obama has publicly acknowledged that he continued to smoke throughout his presidential campaign despite a desire to quit, and a White House spokesperson recently indicated that Obama’s struggle to stop smoking has continued.

Obama cited tobacco firms’ “constant and insidious barrage of advertising where they live, where they learn and where they play. Most insidiously, they are offered products with flavorings that mask the taste of tobacco and make it even more tempting.” Many of those flavorings — although not the most popular, menthol — are banned under the new law.

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius called the bill “a key step forward and an important part of health reform,” while House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the measure “corrects [the] wrong” of FDA being barred from regulating “one of the deadliest products in America.”