Smokers will not be forced to confront graphic images on cigarette packs depicting the potentially insalubrious side-effects of their addiction, a federal judge ruled today. You'll recall that the FDA, carrying out legislation enacted by Congress, was poised to require cigarette packages to be sold with a variety of graphic anti-smoking warnings. But five major tobacco companies filed a lawsuit, and today U.S. District Judge Richard Leon ruled that it's likely they'll win—so he's ordered the FDA hold off on requiring the warnings until that legal battle is settled. more ›

When some people gaze into their crystal balls to get a glimpse of the future, they see visions of food tubes, turkish cabs, or President Donald Trump. But when Mayor Bloomberg accesses his precognitive abilities, he only conjures two misty visions: a NYC landscape filled with trees...and children suing their parents over secondhand smoke. more ›

The city's Health Department has backed away from a directive that would require any retailers selling cigarettes to display graphic warning signs about the dangers of smoking. The ads were to have been posted near the cash register, and would have provided information about how to quit smoking. But big tobacco put up a big fight about the requirement, and they're suing to stop it in federal court. So the city has agreed to stop enforcing the rule until the case is heard, NY1 reports. Tobacco companies argue that the requirement deprives retailers of their right to free speech. more ›

When the smoke clears from Albany's latest inept attempt to get a grip on the budget crisis, one casualty will likely be the state's anti-smoking campaign. Governor Paterson, a committed proponent of the anti-smoking program, has nevertheless proposed a $10 million cut in order to help address a $3.2 billion deficit. The cutback would reduce funding for programs that provide free nicotine patches and help Medicaid patients quit smoking, among other things. Naturally, the cigarette industry and its allies are passing around the cigars. more ›

The NYC Department of Health has taken an aggressive approach to promoting the benefits of not smoking. This week, it focused on how a pack of cigarettes will now cost over $9, thanks to a federal excise tax, and offered free nicotine patches for the day to help encourage smokers to break the habit. more ›

Following in the tradition of showing one smoker's missing fingers and a smoker with a removed larynx, the Health Department continues with graphic images to scare smokers into quitting: New matchbooks show decaying gums and teeth (we've obscured the image, in case there are people eating... click here for full image). Other image include "ravaged lungs... painful tumors." Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Friedan said, “Throat cancer, gum disease, blackened lungs – these are the realities of smoking. Many countries put these images right on the cigarette pack, where they belong. While the US hasn’t done this yet – and New York City is pre-empted from requiring cigarette package labels – we are putting these images where New Yorkers buy cigarettes, just before they light up, in the hope they’ll think twice about the decision to continue smoking.” more ›

In a blockbuster show of billionaires believing in public health, Bill Gates and Mayor Bloomberg will spend $500 million on anti-smoking initiatives around the world. Five million people die from tobacco-related illnesses each year. more ›

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