June 12 NATO officials will meet with Dr. Lawrence Deyton, director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the heart of tobacco products (CTP), at a meeting of stakeholders to discuss current issues of regulation of tobacco. With this upcoming meeting, this article presents the current status of the various rules of the FDA and tobacco litigation.

State Inspection: Currently, FDA has contracts with 37 states and the District of Columbia federal inspections of retail stores that sell tobacco products. These checks include the preparation of state agency inspectors check retail stores to ensure compliance with FDA regulations of tobacco and to determine whether the minor be able to buy tobacco products.

The states with the current contract includes FDA inspections Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri , New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

As reports by the FDA and as of April 30, 2012 the State contracted with the FDA conducted 59,486 inspections of retail with the warning letters issued in 2594 for the first time violations of retail and 145 civil penalty appeal (fines) were issued in retail for two or more violations of the inspection.

This means that 95.4% of all retail checking passed inspection by the FDA in the state.

Retail violation reporting form: In accordance with its broad powers of, CTP offers to the general public to report potential violations of tobacco retailers using a smart phone application online, by phone or by mail.

NATO and its members were against this proposal as an inappropriate, unnecessary and unfair. Congress authorized the FDA to contract with states and train state inspectors to conduct inspections at retail stores, but did not instruct the FDA, to an untrained public to participate in police tobacco retailers and report on possible violations of federal regulations of tobacco. Three-fourths of the states currently FDA conducts inspections of retail and agency contracts with other states, there is no need to the public to participate in the enforcement of the rules of tobacco.

In addition, this proposal could lead to inaccurate or even false information presented members of the FDA tobacco control organizations that focus on specific retailers. FDA rejected concerns about NATO and its members on the proposed retail reporting forms of violations and requested that the Office of Management and Budget to authorize the use of forms to the public.

Menthol Cigarettes in: FDA, Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC) submitted its final report on the effect of CTP menthol on public health in March 2011. In June 2011, CTP, said that the report on TPSAC were reviewed and then presented an overview of the agency to issue menthol external peer review in July 2011. This peer review panel assessment of the final review of the agency and the FDA will then publish its final report in the Federal Register menthol, which will be open for public discussion.

There is no deadline for a final report to be released by the FDA for the public.

Regulation of other tobacco products: Just last month, FDA issued a declaration on the Federal Business Opportunities website, the agency intends to issue a “Deeming regulation” sometime in the summer of 2012 to cover other tobacco products. This means that the FDA plans to release this summer proposed rules covering other tobacco products such as cigars, cigarillos, electronic cigarette, hookah, and perhaps other tobacco products. The proposed rules are not known at this time, but will be published in the Federal Register when released CTP.

Graphic cigarette warnings Health Court: two pending lawsuits against the FDA requirement those cigarette manufacturers to print color graphic health warnings on cigarette packs, boxes and advertising.

The first lawsuit was filed in 2009 and a three-judge U.S. Court of Appeals ruled the district March 19, 2012, color graphic health warnings are commercial disclosure of important information relating to health and, therefore, are constitutional.

The second lawsuit was filed against the color graphic warning labels in August 2011, just weeks after the FDA issued actual graphic warnings, which were to be printed on cigarette packaging and advertising in September 2012. The federal district court judge hearing a second lawsuit decided in late February to the conclusion that the color of graphic warning labels were protected commercial speech and violates the U.S. Constitution. This decision was appealed, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbiacase was heard April 10, 2012. District of Columbia Circuit Court Decision to be issued in the coming months.

With these lawsuits and appeals, FDA announced that the execution of graphic health warnings picture will be postponed.