Press Room

GARLAND, Texas – The following statement was issued by a coalition of leading health organizations:

Frankfort, KY – April 2, 2018 – The following statement can be attributed to four leading health advocacy organizations: American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

"The $1-per-pack cigarette tax increase signed into law Thursday by Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin will help to discourage tobacco use and save lives from cancer and other serious tobacco-related diseases in the state. Research shows that regular and significant tobacco tax increases are one of the most effective ways to encourage tobacco users to quit and protect young people from becoming addicted."

CHARLESTON, W.

https://nap.nationalacademies.org/resource/24952/012318ecigaretteConclusionsbyEvidence.pdfSeven public health and medical groups, and several individual pediatricians, filed suit today in federal court in Maryland challenging a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decision that allows electronic cigarettes and cigars – including candy-flavored products that appeal to kids – to stay on the market for years without being reviewed by the agency.

In response to the bill that would raise Oklahoma’s cigarette tax by $1 per pack, a coalition of leading national, state and local health organizations issued the following statement.

The U.S. Senate passed the Childhood Cancer Survivorship, Treatment, Access and Research (STAR) Act. The bipartisan bill would advance pediatric cancer research and increase transparency and expertise for pediatric cancer research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

The U.S. House of Representatives today passed an FY 18 federal budget, which includes; a $3 billion increase for medical research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH)—the largest such funding increase in 15 years; and a $275 million increase for the National Cancer Institute (NCI). 

The House of Representatives tonight passed legislation that would change the process for accessing experimental drugs without including necessary patient safeguards. The Right-to-Try legislation was opposed by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) along with more than 80 other organizations representing millions of patients.

Twenty organizations representing millions of patients and consumers across the country sent a letter to the Secretaries of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury urging the administration to address patient concerns before finalizing troubling rules that as currently drafted would undermine access to affordable, comprehensive health coverage.