Dire as the coronavirus pandemic has become, it’s worth remembering that there are other severe public health threats that can’t be ignored. That’s a reason to applaud the US Food and Drug Administration for issuing, even in this period, a tough new tobacco regulation that should save lives: It has required graphic warnings on cigarette packages.
The images cannot be small: “The new required warnings must appear prominently on cigarette packages and in cigarette advertisements, occupying the top 50% of the front and rear panels of cigarette packages and at least 20% of the area at the top of advertisements,” the FDA states. In 2009, Congress enacted the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which mandated graphic warnings. The FDA issued the required regulation in 2011. But it was subject to a fierce challenge in federal court, with appellate judges ruling that the FDA had not established that its chosen warnings would actually save lives.
An important innovation, almost certainly adopted to reduce the risk of judicial invalidation, was that the agency did not claim to be able to quantify the number of deaths that its regulation would prevent. Instead, it chose to make the more modest claim that the warnings would promote “a greater public understanding of the negative health consequences of cigarette smoking”. There is every reason to think that the improved understanding will save lives.
For applause-seeking politicians, it has been far too easy to call, in the abstract, for “deconstructing the regulatory state”. For mostly clueless observers in think-tanks, academia and elsewhere, it’s child’s play to cast contempt on the nation’s underpaid, expert bureaucrats and administrators, focused on public health and safety, as out-of-touch, or as obstacles to what really matters: free markets and business autonomy.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
US stocks surge as Congress nears deal on US stimulusDow Jones Industrial Average up over 9% for the first time since 2008 while dollar halts its 10-day rally
Source: BDliveSA - 🏆 12. / 63 Read more »
Stop blaming us for the coronavirus, say SA's bullied Asian communitiesKeith Tamkei says the rampant spread of Covid-19 is infecting society with xenophobia
Source: SundayTimesZA - 🏆 47. / 51 Read more »
WATCH | Friends surprise US couple with drive-by gender reveal party during social-distancingAfter announcing the gender of the baby on a Facebook Live video, the couple received a call from a close friend asking them to step outside.
Source: SowetanLIVE - 🏆 13. / 63 Read more »
Coronavirus: Babies R Us introduces 'preggy hour' for moms-to-beRecognising the need for pregnant women to shop comfortably in less crowded spaces, “Preggy Hour” is carried out every Monday and Thursday mornings from 08h30 to 09h30 said Catherine Jacoby, marketing manager at Toys R Us & Babies R Us South Africa.
Source: IOL - 🏆 46. / 51 Read more »
Rhodes student under quarantine after allegedly being allowed back to residence following US tripA Rhodes University student who arrived at OR Tambo Airport from the USA was allegedly allowed to proceed to his private residence instead of the mandatory quarantine site.
Source: IOL - 🏆 46. / 51 Read more »
IOC urged to make quick Olympic decision as US backs postponementThe International Olympic Committee (IOC) came under pressure to speed up its decision about postponing the Tokyo Olympic Games on Tuesday as athletes criticised the four-week deadline and the United States joined calls to delay the competition.
Source: TimesLIVE - 🏆 28. / 59 Read more »