[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 102 (Thursday, May 27, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29776-29777]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-12684]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Food and Drug Administration
[Docket No. FDA-2010-N-0207]
Tobacco Product Advertising and Promotion to Youth and Racial and
Ethnic Minority Populations; Request for Comments
AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.
ACTION: Notice; request for data and information.
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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is soliciting
information, research, and ideas to assist FDA in fulfilling its
responsibilities regarding tobacco product advertising and promotion
that is designed to appeal to specific racial and ethnic minority
populations in the United States. For the same reasons, we are also
interested in receiving information about the advertising and promotion
of menthol and other cigarettes to youth in general, and to youth in
minority communities. After reviewing the submitted information,
research, and ideas, FDA will be better able to fulfill its
responsibilities under The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco
Control Act (Tobacco Control Act).
DATES: Submit electronic or written comments by July 26, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Submit electronic comments to http://www.regulations.gov.
Submit written comments to the Division of Dockets Management (HFA-
305), Food and Drug Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, rm. 1061,
Rockville, MD 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kathleen K. Quinn, Center for Tobacco
Products, Food and Drug Administration, 9200 Corporate Blvd.,
Rockville, MD 20850-3229, 240-276-1717, e-mail:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Tobacco products are responsible for more than 440,000 deaths each
year. The rates of tobacco use and tobacco-related mortality are higher
among certain racial/ethnic groups, including American Indian and
Alaska Natives, and African-American men. As the National Cancer
Institute (NCI) noted in Monograph 19, ``[t]argeting of various
population groups--including * * * specific racial and ethnic
populations * * * has been strategically important to the tobacco
industry.'' (Ref. 1).
The first Surgeon General's Report to address the tobacco
industry's history of targeting its marketing to minority communities
was published in 1998 (Ref. 2). Additionally, studies from the early
1990s document that outdoor tobacco advertising was disproportionately
targeted to young people and to minority communities (Refs. 3 and 4). A
longitudinal study conducted from 1990 to 1994 in 4 types of Los
Angeles ethnic neighborhoods found that, ``[c]ompared with White
neighborhood thoroughfares, African American and Hispanic neighborhoods
contained a greater tobacco ad density, and all minority neighborhoods
contained greater tobacco ad concentration along the roadsides * * *.
These data are consistent with the assertion that tobacco companies
target ethnic minorities with higher rates of advertising and
ethnically tailored campaigns.'' (Ref. 5). A meta-analysis published in
2007 confirmed that ``African Americans are exposed to a higher volume
of pro-tobacco advertising in terms of both concentration and
density.'' (Ref. 6). In addition to the volume of advertising, the
methods used in targeting advertisements to some specific communities
have also been studied. For example, Monograph 19 discusses how
advertising for mentholated brands to African-Americans was designed
around lifestyle appeals relating to ``fantasy and escapism,''
``expensive objects,'' and ``nightlife, entertainment, and music''
themes (Ref. 7). However, as NCI noted, ``little attention has been
paid to understanding tobacco marketing aimed at American Indians and
Alaska Natives, despite their high prevalence of tobacco use.'' (Ref.
8). Tobacco marketing to Asian Americans is also under-studied.
On June 22, 2009, the President signed the Tobacco Control Act into
law. The Tobacco Control Act grants FDA important new authority to
regulate the manufacture, marketing, and distribution of tobacco
products to protect the public health generally and to reduce tobacco
use by minors. Among its many provisions, the Tobacco Control Act added
section 907(e)(1) to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the act)
(21 U.S.C. 387g(e)(1)). Section 907(e)(1) of the act requires the
Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary) to ``refer to
the [Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory] Committee for report and
recommendation * * * the issue of the impact of the use of menthol in
cigarettes on the public health, including such use among children,
[[Page 29777]]
African-Americans, Hispanics, and other racial and ethnic minorities.''
In addition, section 906(d) of the act (21 U.S.C. 387f(d)) gives
the Secretary authority to impose restrictions on the advertising and
promotion of a tobacco product that the Secretary determines are
appropriate to protect the public health.
Section 105(a) of the Tobacco Control Act (21 U.S.C. 387f-1)
requires the Secretary to develop and publish an action plan to enforce
restrictions on the sale, distribution, promotion, and advertising of
menthol and other cigarettes to youth. The provision requires that the
Secretary develop this plan in consultation with public health
organizations and other stakeholders with demonstrated experience and
expertise in serving minority communities. The action plan must also
include provisions designed to ensure enforcement of the restrictions
on the sale, distribution, promotion, and advertising of menthol and
other cigarettes to youth in minority communities.
More information about tobacco advertising, promotion, and
marketing to minority population groups will assist FDA in implementing
the public health goals of the Tobacco Control Act. To assist FDA in
carrying out the previously mentioned provisions in a manner that will
protect the public health, FDA seeks information about the advertising
and promotion of tobacco products to particular racial and ethnic
minority populations. A better understanding of this advertising and
promotion will help FDA understand what steps, if any, may be
appropriate under section 906(d) of the act. In addition, we are
requesting comments that will assist the agency's development of an
action plan regarding enforcement of regulations on advertising and
promotion of menthol and other cigarettes to youth generally and to
youth in minority communities. FDA is also seeking information that
will assist the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee in
understanding and developing recommendations regarding the impact of
the use of menthol in cigarettes among children, African-Americans,
Hispanics, and other racial and ethnic minorities. A copy of the
Tobacco Control Act is available at http://www.fda.gov/tobacco.
II. Request for Information
1. Product advertising and promotion play a critical role in
fostering brand loyalty and communicating messages to consumers. FDA is
aware that messages can be conveyed through a variety of visual cues
and that, historically, messages about tobacco products have been
created to appeal to specific racial and ethnic communities. Increased
understanding of such messaging will assist FDA in determining what
steps to take, if any, regarding the sale, distribution, advertising,
and promotion of tobacco products that may be appropriate for the
protection of public health. We are therefore requesting information on
ways in which the advertising and promotion of tobacco products may
affect tobacco use among racial and ethnic minority populations.
2. In the Federal Register of March 19, 2010 (75 FR 13225), FDA
published final regulations restricting the sale and distribution of
cigarettes and smokeless tobacco to protect children and adolescents.
Those regulations take effect June 22, 2010. Therefore, FDA is also
seeking input specifically on designing an action plan regarding
enforcement of the final regulations on advertising and promotion of
menthol and other cigarettes to youth generally and to youth in
minority communities.
3. FDA is also requesting information that will assist the Tobacco
Products Scientific Advisory Committee to better understand, report on,
and make recommendations regarding the impact of the use of menthol in
cigarettes among children, African-Americans, Hispanics, and other
racial and ethnic minorities.
III. Comments
Interested persons may submit to the Division of Dockets Management
(see ADDRESSES) either electronic or written comments regarding this
document. It is only necessary to send one set of comments. It is no
longer necessary to send two copies of mailed comments. Identify
comments with the docket number found in brackets in the heading of
this document. Received comments may be seen in the Division of Dockets
Management between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.
IV. References
The following references have been placed on display in the
Division of Dockets Management (see ADDRESSES) and may be seen by
interested persons between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.
1. National Cancer Institute, U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, ``The Role of the Media in Promoting and Reducing
Tobacco Use,'' Tobacco Control Monograph No. 19; p. 11, 2008.
2. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, ``Tobacco Use
Among U.S. Racial/Ethnic Minority Groups--African Americans,
American Indians and Alaska Natives, Asian Americans and Pacific
Islanders, and Hispanics,'' A Report of the Surgeon General; p. 220,
1998.
3. Mitchell, O. & M. Greenberg, ``Outdoor Advertising of
Addictive Products,'' New Jersey Medicine; 88, p. 331, 1991 (finding
that billboards in black and Hispanic neighborhoods in four New
Jersey cities disproportionately contained advertisements for
tobacco and alcohol products.)
4. Ammerman, S.D. & M. Nolden, ``Neighborhood-Based Tobacco
Advertising Targeting Adolescents,'' Western Journal of Medicine;
162, pp. 514-518, 1995 (finding that adolescent exposure to tobacco
billboard advertisements in San Francisco in 1992 and 1993 was
greater in Latino neighborhoods due to a greater adolescent
population, and finding that qualitative analyses of the tobacco
advertisements ``suggested that adolescents are the primary
targets.'')
5. Stoddard, J.L., et. al., ``Tailoring Outdoor Tobacco
Advertising to Minorities in Los Angeles County,'' Journal of Health
Communication; 3, p. 137, 1998.
6. Primack, B.A., et al., ``Volume of Tobacco Advertising in
African American Markets: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis,''
Public Health Reports; 122, p. 607, 2007.
7. National Cancer Institute, U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, ``The Role of the Media in Promoting and Reducing
Tobacco Use,'' Tobacco Control Monograph No. 19; p. 57, 2008.
8. Id., p. 15.
Dated: May 21, 2010.
Leslie Kux,
Acting Assistant Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2010-12684 Filed 5-26-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-01-S