One could say that the battle over tobacco and its place in our nation began in the 1600s in Virginia—-and more than 400 years later, it may be that it finally will be regulated. In fairness, tobacco’s hazards were first identified, on a broad scale, in the 1950s.

Still, it is wise never to count out the wiles and ways of Big Tobacco.

The general consensus is that the Food and Drug Administration is a broken agency. Until the FDA functions properly, it will not be possible to add on another burden to its regulatory load and expect it to do the job. It simple is not achievable under current conditions.

Bloomberg News

Catherine Larkin reports that, “The Senate voted to give U.S. drug regulators power to restrict tobacco products, bringing a decade-old fight over supervising the $80-billion-a-year industry near an end.

“The 79-17 vote followed House approval of a similar measure April 2. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the House may accept the changes made by the Senate and send the legislation “right on” to President Barack Obama for his signature. Obama, who publicly swore off smoking last year, backed regulation as a senator.

“The measures empower the Food and Drug Administration to restrict ingredients such as tar and nicotine, limit advertising to young people and approve the sale of new products. Tobacco- state lawmakers killed a similar attempt in 1998 and a half dozen times since then. This year regulation has the support of the Democratic majority in Congress, public-health groups and Altria Group Inc., the biggest U.S. cigarette maker with brands such as Marlboro and Benson & Hedges.”

Source: Bloomberg News, June 11, 2009