The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a final rule to require new health warnings on cigarette packages and in cigarette advertisements.
The new warnings will feature textual statements with photo-realistic color images depicting some of the lesser-known health risks of cigarette smoking, including impact on fetal growth, cardiac disease, and diabetes.
Starting June 18, 2021, these new cigarette health warnings will be required to appear prominently on cigarette packages and in advertisements, occupying the top 50% of the area of the front and rear panels of cigarette packages and at least 20% of the area at the top of cigarette advertisements. In addition, the new warnings must be randomly and equally displayed and distributed on cigarette packages and rotated quarterly in cigarette advertisements.
Tobacco product manufacturers, distributors, or retailers are required to submit a plan for the random and equal display and distribution of the required warnings on packages and the quarterly rotation in advertisements for approval by FDA.