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Senate Appropriations Committee Preserves FDA's Authority to Regulate Tobacco Products

May 19, 2016

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- May 19, 2016 -- The U.S. Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee today marked up an Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Related Agencies appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2017 that would not undercut FDA oversight of tobacco products.

A statement from the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) follows:

"We applaud the Committee for preserving the FDAäó»s ability to protect the public health and oversee several tobacco products proving to be popular with youth, including cigars, electronic cigarettes, and hookah. This action to uphold the FDA's authority comes less than two weeks after the agency issued its final deeming rule to assert its authority over all tobacco products slated to take effect in August.

"Unlike the House version of this bill, senators did not include a requirement that the FDA exempt from oversight many cigars, including some cheap and some flavored cigars often popular with youth. The action of the Committee preserves the authority of the FDA to regulate all tobacco products as granted by Congress in the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009.

"In addition, the Senate bill does not include a House-sponsored tobacco industry loophole to move up the grandfather date to allow cigars, e-cigarettes, and other tobacco products to escape a critical review by the FDA and make it easier for new products to stay on the market before the agency determines the extent of harm they cause to public health. 

"We applaud Members of the Committee for adopting a clean bill and not including the House proposals to undercut the FDA's tobacco products oversight authority."

About ACS CAN ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem.ξ ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit www.fightcancer.org.

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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Jill Courtney or Alissa Crispino
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
Phone: (202) 585-3278 or (202) 661-5772
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]

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