More Big Brother in our wallets and lifestyle.

First, it's important to remember that regulating a tobacco product isn't the same as banning it. FDA is not proposing a ban on all cigars or on any type of cigar.

Second, although all tobacco products are harmful and potentially addictive, FDA has heard the input from stakeholders about the possible differences in the public health impact of premium cigars compared to other cigars. We are taking this into account as we consider potential regulatory options around the categories of cigars.

In the proposed rule, the FDA has suggested two different ways the agency could regulate cigars. One option is to regulate all kinds of cigars. The other option is to exclude premium cigars, as described in the rule, from the scope of the regulation.

Here's where you come in: We're seeking formal comments on the proposed rule as to how cigars should be regulated. You have a chance to tell us what you think of FDA's proposed rule, and comments are due on July 9, 2014. We encourage you, as well as manufacturers, retailers, and other stakeholders, to provide comments and to include any data and information you may have to support your comments.

Although tobacco products including cigars do vary, we know that cigars are not safe. All cigars, including premium cigars, contain the same chemicals and toxicants that are known to cause cancer and heart disease. FDA has several public health concerns regarding cigar use.

One major public health concern is youth cigar usage. We know that kids smoke cigars, and more research is needed about how this affects public health. Research also suggests that youth see cigars in a more positive light than cigarettes and believe cigars are more natural and less harmful; and some do not realize that cigars contain nicotine.1 Such false beliefs about product risks can be a significant predictor of subsequent use behavior.2

Cigar smoking causes cancers of the lung, larynx, and esophagus, and also cardiovascular disease. Even cigar smokers who reported that they did not inhale were about three times more likely to die from lung cancer than those who have never smoked.3 The amount of nicotine in a cigar can range from the equivalent of a single cigarette to the equivalent of an entire package of cigarettes, depending on cigar size and the amount of tobacco incorporated into its components. In addition, the concentrations of some toxic and cancer-causing compounds are higher in cigar smoke than in cigarette smoke, and tobacco smoke is a major source of fine-particle and carbon monoxide indoor air pollution.4 Cigars can and do deliver nicotine at a level that can produce dependence. Factors -- such as the degree of inhalation, the rate of oral nicotine absorption, the development of tolerance to nicotine, the age of initiation, and the duration of exposure -- can contribute to the development of dependence.5

Here's some background on FDA's authority, which you may already know: The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (Tobacco Control Act) amended the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic (FD&C) Act to give FDA immediate authority to regulate certain tobacco products -- cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, roll-your-own tobacco, and smokeless tobacco. And while it didn't apply right away to other tobacco products, such as cigars, the law gave FDA authority to cover those products through regulation.

We understand that cigar manufacturers and retailers are concerned about being subject to this type of regulation for the first time. That's why the FDA has met several times with representatives of different cigar manufacturers and their trade associations to better understand how premium cigars are made, marketed, distributed, and used. We are always open to meeting with these and other stakeholders to hear from all points of view on issues related to product regulation.

We've issued a proposed rule in the April 25, 2014 issue of the Federal Register containing two options for regulating additional products that meet the legal definition of a tobacco product. Because cigars meet this statutory definition, their potential regulation by FDA is discussed in this proposed rule.

It's important to remember that this is only a proposed rule and is not final. That's why we're seeking comments, and encouraging you, as well as manufacturers, retailers, and other stakeholders, to formally provide comments through the FDA and to include any data and information you may have to support your comments. Thank you for participating in this We the People petition.

1. Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, "Youth Use of Cigars: Patterns of Use and Perceptions of Risk," OEI-06-98-00030, 1999.

Malone, R., Yerger, V., and Pearson, C., "Cigar Risk Perception in Focus Groups of Urban African American Youth," Journal of Substance Abuse, 13(4):549-561, 2001.

2. Krosnick, J.A., Chang, L., Sherman, S.J., et al., "The Effects of Beliefs About the Health Consequences of Cigarette Smoking on Smoking Onset," Journal of Communication, 56:S18-S37, 2006.

This just came in my email. My first response is that I'm an adult, and don't need the government regulating my cigars, premium or otherwise. As I write this I'm smoking a Joya de Nicaragua, and could care less if it is a premium or not. What are some of your ideas about what my response should be?

Hate that they may mess with your cigars but what about the electronic cigs I am using to quit? Under smokeless tobacco appears they would be covered also. Didn’t read the whole thing and just wonder. In Ky our state rep filed a bill to tax e-cigs the same as regular cigs. He is a tobacco farmer and I met him before he was elected and he is what is commonly called a p*ick. I haven’t heard if it has passed or not.

Sorry, I don’t know anything about the eCigs. I quit smoking cigarettes 30 years ago, the old fashioned way, and never wanted one since, so I haven’t paid attention to the new ways to quit, or what the government is doing about them. Regulating eCigs sounds like an idiotic idea to me. I smoke cigars off and on for enjoyment, and I don’t inhale them. ...They are already too expensive for a miser like me, and this nonsense will end my one and only vice, not counting an occasional double Scotch.

I can quit cold turkey and have done it for 4 years, problem was I gained over 50 pounds as my metabolism slowed and my sense of smell and taste came back. Finally I gave up when I figured out the extra weight would kill me before the cancer.
Losing to my idea weight before I give up the e-cigs also.

Why wouldn’t they regulate cigars? It’s what authoritarian, leftist, control freaks do. Cigarettes, light bulbs, toilets, and now agitation for “Big Gulp” regulation.

If it moves, or if it remains stationary, they want to regulate it.

But whatever form their proposed cigar regulation takes, they will have to pry my Romeo y Julieta from my future nicotine-stained fingers.

5 posted on 05/10/2014 6:54:59 AM PDT by SharpRightTurn (White, black, and red all over--America's affirmative action, metrosexual president.)

Good morning.

Even cigar smokers who reported that they did not inhale were about three times more likely to die from lung cancer than those who have never smoked.3

I don't buy that.

I don't know anyone who inhales cigars. Once I accidently inhaled, and I was sick for an hour.

5.56mm

7 posted on 05/10/2014 9:27:41 AM PDT by Max in Utah (A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within.)

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