Statement of M. Cass Wheeler, chief executive officer, American Heart Association on federal tobacco lawsuit

American Heart Association
Monday, 11 March 2002

A news report disclosing the federal government's proposed remedies in its racketeering lawsuit against the tobacco industry appears to represent yet another needed piece in the puzzle to ensure that the public, particularly our children, are protected from the dangers of tobacco.

According to today's Wall Street Journal, a Justice Department document calls for tough restrictions on the marketing, manufacture and sale of tobacco products.

While the American Heart Association applauds the federal government for aggressively pursuing the lawsuit, these remedies will not necessarily put an end to the tobacco industry's marketing schemes to lure children to smoking, or portray its deadly product as safer and less harmful, particularly in light of its continued deceptive behavior after the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement (MSA). Without a doubt, it remains clear that without Food and Drug Administration regulatory authority, the tobacco industry will continue to entice children to a lifestyle of smoking, particularly with flashy ads in magazines kids frequently read as it has done since signing the MSA.

Even though the restrictions the Justice Department says it will seek appear to be strong, these restrictions provide no authority to reduce or eliminate harmful ingredients or provide authority to regulate all health claims that may appear on allegedly reduced-risk products – two critical elements to reduce the death and disease caused by tobacco use.

According to a recent National Cancer Institute report on light and low-tar cigarettes, the marketing of these allegedly reduced-risk products have jeopardized the public health for decades by deterring current smokers from quitting, and encouraging new smokers to start.

The report clearly underscores the need for comprehensive FDA regulation, including the authority to regulate health claims. The report shows that people who switch to low-tar or light cigarettes are likely to inhale the same amount of cancer-causing toxins and remain at high risk for smoking-related cancers and other illnesses, including cardiovascular disease, which accounts for the largest portion of the more than 400,000 smoking-related deaths in this country.

In recent years, Big Tobacco's own actions have proven that it cannot be trusted even under legal agreements to regulate itself, so it would be unwise to believe that these remedies proposed by the Justice Department alone, although a positive tool, will be enough.

For more information, or to contact American Heart Association, see their website at: www.americanheart.org