FDA moves swiftly on tobacco rules

WASHINGTON, Sept. 14 (UPI) -- Federal regulators are moving rapidly to set up an anti-smoking agency to rule on the making, marketing and sales of tobacco products, a U.S. congressman said.

"I have great confidence that it will make major progress in combating tobacco use and improving the public health of all Americans," Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said of the new Center for Tobacco Products.

The center, under the governance of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, is to be run by Dr. Lawrence Deyton, who was most recently chief public health and environmental hazards officer at the Veterans Health Administration.

The FDA has established a scientific advisory committee for the center, which cannot outlaw tobacco use. FDA and center officials are seeking public comment on how to reduce tobacco use -- the primary goal of the federal Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, signed into law in June, the Louisville (Ky.) Courier-Journal reported Monday.