Tobacco Companies Drop Lawsuit Against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration

A federal lawsuit filed against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by tobacco subsidiaries Altria Group, Inc., Reynolds American Inc. and Lorillard Inc. has been dropped. The suit challenged the agency’s recent attempt to assert authority over labels on tobacco products.

The subsidiaries said in a court filing that they were dropping the suit because federal health officials announced last week that the FDA will review a policy that would have forced companies to secure federal approval for tobacco products if they made packaging changes such as switching a background color from green to red, altering a logo or adding such words as “premium tobacco.” The agency said it will hold off on the policy until it decides whether to revise or preserve it, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported.

The companies filed the lawsuit in April in U.S. District Court in Washington, DC, as a challenge to the policy. The cigarette manufacturers alleged the 2009 Tobacco Control Act, which gave the FDA authority to regulate tobacco, restricted the agency from preapproving the labels on Marlboro, Camel and Newport cigarettes. The manufactures argued that, as a result, they should be able to alter the color or look of tobacco packaging any way they see fit, according to WSJ.

The suit did not challenge the surgeon general’s warning labels, which are required by law and warn about the health risks of smoking. The companies urged the FDA to go through a “notice-and-comment rule making” process before issuing new policies. The agency will be reviewing comments from tobacco companies and others throughout the duration of the evaluation, a spokesman told WSJ.

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