Cigarette Producing Companies Sued US Government

Five US cigarette producing companies have sued the Food and Drug Administration of the US with the demand to suspend the law on printing photographs on cigarette packs illustrating the diseases that smoking causes.

According to the law adopted in 2009, starting from September 2011 cigarette producing companies were required to post warnings about the damage of smoking on each pack. Those pictures should depict damaged lungs, dead bodies of people and rotten teeth.

These pictures should be placed on the top of the pack and occupy at least 20% of the space on it.

RJ Reynolds Tobacco (Camel և Winston), Lorillard Tobacco (Newport և True), Commonwealth Brands (Davidoff և West) and Liggett Group and Santa Fe Natural Tobacco companies think that the law contradicts the US Constitution that defines the freedom of speech.

Altria company, which belongs to Philip Morris with its Marlboro brand, didn’t join the law suit against the FDA.

As one of the American cancer prevention organizations reported, in 2011 approximately 220 thousand US citizens were diagnosed with cancer.