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Mike Mitka

JAMA. 2008;300(2):160.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Seven former secretaries of the Department of Health and Human Services urged Congress to amend bills in the House and Senate that would grant the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory oversight of tobacco products.

Critics of bills that would exclude menthol from a proposed ban on cigarette flavorings say that this exception would harm black smokers, most of whom use menthol cigarettes. (Photo credit: American Medical Association)

The secretaries are concerned that under the provisions of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (S 625 and HR 1108 [http://thomas.loc.gov]), menthol would be excluded from a proposed ban on flavors in cigarettes. They noted in a letter sent to all members of Congress on June 4 that because 75% of black smokers use menthol cigarettes, the exception is " . . . a loophole big enough for a herd of wild animals to romp through and trample the health . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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