Tobacco companies file lawsuit over warning labels

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Tobacco companies want a judge to put a stop

to new graphic cigarette labels that include the sewn-up corpse of

a smoker and pictures of diseased lungs, saying they unfairly urge

adults to shun their legal products and will cost millions to

produce.

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Four of the five largest U.S. tobacco companies sued the federal

government Tuesday, saying the warnings violate their free speech

rights.

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“Never before in the United States have producers of a lawful

product been required to use their own packaging and advertising to

convey an emotionally-charged government message urging adult

consumers to shun their products,” the companies wrote in the

lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington.

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The companies, led by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., Lorillard Tobacco

Co., said the warnings no longer simply convey facts to allow

people to make a decision on whether to smoke. They instead force

them to put government anti-smoking advocacy more prominently on

their packs than their own brands, the companies say. They want a

judge to stop the labels.

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The FDA refused to comment, saying the agency does not discuss

pending litigation. But when she announced the new labels in June,

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius called them

frank and honest warnings about the dangers of smoking.

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The FDA approved nine new warnings to rotate on cigarette packs.

They will be printed on the entire top half, front and back, of the

packaging. The new warnings also must constitute 20 percent of any

cigarette advertising. They also all include a number for a

stop-smoking hotline.

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One warning label is a picture of a corpse with its chest sewed up

and the words: “Smoking can kill you.” Another label has a picture

of a healthy pair of lungs beside a yellow and black pair with a

warning that smoking causes fatal lung disease.

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The lawsuit said the images were manipulated to be especially

emotional. The tobacco companies said the corpse photo is actually

an actor with a fake scar, while the healthy lungs were sanitized

to make the diseased organ look worse.

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The companies also said the new labels will cost them millions of

dollars for new equipment so they can frequently change from

warning to warning and designers to make sure the labels meet

federal requirements while maintaining some distinction among

brands.

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Joining R.J. Reynolds and Lorillard in the suit are Commonwealth

Brands Inc., Liggett Group LLC and Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company

Inc. Altria Group Inc., parent company of the nation’s largest

cigarette maker, Philip Morris USA, is not a part of the

lawsuit.

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The free speech lawsuit is a different action than a suit by

several of the same companies over the Family Smoking Prevention

and Tobacco Control Act. The law, which took affect two years ago,

cleared the way for the more graphic warning labels, but also

allowed the FDA to limit nicotine. The law also banned tobacco

companies from sponsoring athletic or social events and prevented

them from giving away free samples or branded

merchandise.

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A federal judge upheld many parts of the law, but the companies are

appealing.

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