Tobacco Documents Online

.c PAGE~. TWO'~ of the Officeof'Smokiing andiHealth, which does a commendabTe job inicoordinatingandg dissemi.natiiagismok.ing-reTated'iinfarmation. The stimulusand~support.that this 1'egis- liation can provide will further augment.these admirable efforts.. In addition, our bilTl asksthe,Tobacco,Industryto~rotate the messages oni.thewarn- iing labels allready mandated by theFed'eral Cigarette Labeling and AA4ertising,Act. TFieseliabels imform our smokingipopulation not only of cigarettes.' causall link withi cancer of the lung, but also with enphysema,, a chronic Tung disease which.causes aslow, and agonizing death and disabless over a.milliion Americans. Cigarettess also cause:heart disease and may eausemiscarriages or premature births. Tobacco.manufacturers will also be asked to provide information regarding.the chemical additivesused as "flavorenliancers" so that our scientists can determineiif they aren't possibly as cancer-causing astobacco:itself: Today we are goingto,hear testimony from representatives of the administration;.from a panel of outstanding scientists;, and'.froma distinguished spokesman representing the, "big.three"'volunteer agencies. (TheAmerican CancerSociety„ the.American.Heart Assoc4a- tion);. P wouTd 1'.iketo take this opportunity to recogni¢e the American Heart,Association. for their assistiancein drafting the Comprehensive.Smoking Preventiom Education Act. We wil8l alsohear testi~mony from a representative of the Tobacco Institute. The testimony presented'today is going to address.the health-related aspects of this bill., Sen., Packwood has scheduled ConmerceComnittee hearings for April 26, 1982, regarding advertising and tradee issues.. -30-

4 Fromtheoffice.of" . • . 4JEN. ORRIN 1 lL Y l CH Washington, D.E. 20510 Marchi 16',. 1982 Contact: Ed. Darre111„ 202/'224-5675'202/543-3191 Statement of Sen. Orrin, Hatch Before.the Senate Comnittee an Labor and Human Resources Hearing,on the Conprehensine Smoki'ng Education Act„ S. 1929 It is a pleasure for me to:welcome.you here today to these full Committee hearingss devoted to the.Comprehens:Pve Smoking Prevention Education Education Att (S. 1929). As chairman of the Labor and Human Resources Cbmmittee,.I have had.the opportunity to learn a great deal;about the healthineeds..of our citizens~. Over the past decade, there have - beeni-numerousfederal'initiatives intended to meet these needs; all of them wlthiworthy motives,, but with, a price tagiwhichhas proven to be more costlyy than taxpayers can afford. Consequently,"Congress is.slowly but surelyrediscovering a lost virtue. It's called pru- dence. And sonow, ih cooperation withPresident Reagan. we:aretryfng to target our, resources:and activities where they are likely to reap the most benefit, where they will give us the "biggest:bang for the buck.° . In tlllis regard. I have.consulted with scientistsand health~professional's within the public and private sector for their recommendations.. I.am impressed with,thefr strongg consensus favoring more emphasis on preventive medicine and health promotion. We simply can no l~onger afford~to spend,the llion~s share of our federal health dol'laron the treat- ment of diisease,.partiiculiarlywhen.so many of the iTlnesseswhich cause d'eath and disability are.preventable.. I speak.here.not only of the dollar eosts„ but also.ofthehuman costs.Ourgovernment'scomnitment to.heal.th prevention~ must, therefore,: become more than senti- . mentall "lip service."' Ourconunitment shoul&translate ihtoo action. The:health of the.Ateeritan people depend's on it..Our nation's preeminent health, experts:agree that the most worthwhile single effort we could maketoimprove the health of'our citilzenss is to convince them of the.harmfulmesse of smoking cigarettes. It causes chronic disease, premature death, and billions of dollars ib lost productivity every year: In fact„ this legislation enjoys endorsement from vilr- tually every major health and medical professional organization concerned withipubiic health. Ii am not interested in legislati'ng.. "heatth„"'in telling people how to live.their per-sonali lives.I amparticularl'y not interested in having.the federal government step in if a problem ean.be sollved in~ the private sector, as iU usual'ly can.. But I amconvinced that the health consequences ofsmoking,are of suchmagni~tude; and that the publikissuffi¢ientlyunaware of these problems." that we:need another major national effort tohel~p our citizens makeinfamoedchoices:about their health. It is not government regulation, .' but moree public education I have in, mind. I agree with former A'ssistance.Secretary ofHeallth, Dr. Ted Cooper,:when he said, "We will achieve the greatest good not through abso•1lute.ISans„ but by.giving our peopietheknowledge necessary to make Irational and informedd personal!decisions." That's:why I.introduced the Comprehensive Smoking Prevention Education Aet, along.with Sen. Packwood„ Chairman of the Senate Conmerce Commiittee,.on December 9,1987c This bill is designed to.stimulate a cooperative effort with the private sector to provide health education on smoking.. We:wouldllilke the:federali government to continue the activities: (MORE) 03613338 .