Jump to full article: Lorillard Tobacco Company, 2008-07-30
Intro: The Company also said that while it fully supports reasonable federal regulation of the tobacco industry, that the FDA is already overburdened and is the wrong agency to carry out this enormous task.
The Company also said that it welcomes the provision in this bill that calls for a scientific review of menthol in cigarettes. While the scientific studies to date do not support a conclusion that menthol cigarettes are more hazardous or addictive than non-menthol cigarettes, the Energy and Commerce Committee noted the importance of ensuring the FDA has the "scientific evidence necessary to make the best decision to protect the public health" for all cigarette additives and constituents.
Lorillard agrees that a proper scientific review based on "sound information and scientific evidence and data," as the Energy and Commerce Committee report states, with involvement by all interested parties as required under federal rulemaking procedures, will be informative in addressing the questions that are being raised about menthol cigarettes.
The Company said the current challenges facing FDA are well documented. It believes that the addition of a new multi-billion dollar a year industry for the FDA to oversee, when the agency is already struggling to fulfill its core mission, is misguided. The Company said that it is understandable why 82 percent of those surveyed in a February 2008 Zogby poll say they are concerned that regulating tobacco would interfere with FDA's principal mission to oversee pharmaceutical drugs and the nation's food supply. . . .
The Company believes the FDA is overburdened and the wrong agency to regulate tobacco -- and looks to the Senate for its leadership to find an effective regulatory solution.
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