WASHINGTON, June 22 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack
Obama signed a bill into law on Monday that authorizes the government
unprecedented powers to control tobacco makers.
"The legislation I'm signing today represents change
that's been decades in the making," Obama said at a signing ceremony at the
White House.
U.S. President Barack Obama signs the
Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which gives the Food
and Drug Administration unprecedented authority to regulate tobacco, in
the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington D.C., capital of the
United States, June 22, 2009. (Xinhua/Zhang Yan) Photo
Gallery>>>
The
law gave unprecedented power to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to
control tobacco use among youngsters, regulate nicotine levels, bar added
flavorings and require tough new warning labels.
The FDA will be also granted the power to create a
new Center for Tobacco Products to oversee the science-based regulation of
tobacco products in the United States.
According to the law, tobacco companies must
disclose their products' ingredients, and allow the FDA to require changes to protect
public health.
U.S. President Barack Obama shakes hands
with 14-year-old Hoai-Nam Ngoc Bui, member of the Campaign for Tobacco
Free Kids, after signing the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control
Act in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington D.C., capital of
the United States, June 22, 2009. (Xinhua/Zhang Yan) Photo Gallery>>>
It also imposes strict limits on tobacco advertising
in publications that have a significant number of teenagers as readers, and bans
the use of words like "mild" or "light" in ads that makes tobacco products seem
safer.
"Despite decades of lobbying and advertising by the
tobacco industry, we passed a law to help protect the next generation of
Americans from growing up with a deadly habit that so many of our generation
have lived with," said the president.
U.S. President Barack Obama speaks prior
to signing the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act in the
Rose Garden of the White House in Washington D.C., capital of the United
States, June 22, 2009. (Xinhua/Zhang Yan) Photo Gallery>>>
The bill, which is backed by many public health
groups, is, however, strongly opposed by the tobacco industry.
Official statistics show that nearly 20 percent of
Americans smoke, and about 440,000 people die a year in the United States due to
cancer, heart disease, emphysema and other tobacco-related
ailments.
WASHINGTON, June 11 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Senate approved a
bill on Thursday to give the government more power over tobacco makers, after
the House of Representatives adopted a similar measure.
By voting 79 to 17, the Senate will give the Food and
Drug Administration unprecedented power to control tobacco use among youngsters,
regulate nicotine levels, bar added flavorings and require tough new warning
labels. Full story
