BAT to Develop ‘Safer’ Nicotine Products for Long-Term Use

British American Tobacco Plc (BATS), the maker of Lucky Strikes, created a unit that will seek to develop nicotine products for people wanting an alternative to cigarettes as governments aim to reduce smoking.

Nicoventures Ltd. plans to develop tobacco-free nicotine products, Kate Matrunola, a spokeswoman for London-based BAT, said today. The unit employs four people and will discuss with regulators what sort of products might work, she said by phone.

“It’s not for cessation,” Matrunola said. “There is an unmet need out there for consumers” who don’t want to quit.

Tobacco companies have spent decades trying to develop a safer alternative to smoking, including RJR Nabisco Inc.’s 1988 test of Premier, a smokeless cigarette. Star Scientific Inc., based in Glen Allen, Virginia, said March 23 that a decision by U.S. regulators cleared the way for it to start selling tobacco lozenges. The global market for cigarettes excluding China, which is largely closed to foreign tobacco companies, will probably shrink by 2.5 percent in 2011, BAT Chief Executive Officer Nicandro Durante said Feb. 24.

Restrictions on advertising and marketing may be a challenge to smoking substitutes, according to analysts.

“The biggest obstacles will be regulatory,” Erik Bloomquist, an analyst at Berenberg Bank in London, said by phone. “The mindset in much of public health around tobacco is quit or die, not harm-reduction.”

Democrats eye hike of cigarette tax in informal hearing

The Republican super-majority wouldn’t let them do it through official channels, so House Democrats held their own informational meeting on a proposal to hike the state’s cigarette tax.

The idea of the tax hike was tossed around by Rep. Dennis Lake, R-Blackfoot, in the early days of the session, but he axed the proposal because he believed members of the House Revenue and Taxation Committee wouldn’t go for it.

Democrats wanted the issue to at least receive a hearing and protested last week on the House floor by forcing reading of all legislation prior to voting, meaning a delay to the end of the session.

Democrats held an informal hearing on the matter Monday, a meeting that nearly filled the House Health and Welfare Committee room in the lower east wing of the Capitol. Though many were there to testify in favor of the tax hike, not all wanted to do so.

Representatives for two Idaho convenience store chains testified that the hike would hurt businesses and consumers. Andrea Jackson of Jackson’s Food Stores said that her stores’ profit margins from ordering cigarettes are thin and would likely decrease with a tax hike.

Charley Jones of Stinker Stations pointed out that smokers pay enough and that a hike of cigarette taxes helped fund the $125 million renovation and expansion of the Idaho Capitol. “It’s beyond me why cigarette smokers are paying for it,” Jones mused. “Smokers pay much, much more than their fair share of taxes. “

Getting into the politics of the matter, Jackson said that it’s not right to force smokers to fund various facets of state government. “To single out one group in our society to pay for that is unfair,” said Jackson. Jones echoed the sentiment, but also said that government should work to control the populace. “Taxes aimed at punishing bad behavior … I think that’s a problem,” Jones said.

But supporters offered their own take on the proposal. Some argued that the increase would help public health, while others said it would help fund government programs.

Karen Des Aulniers of the Treasure Valley Alcohol Drug Coalition said the hike would aid public health. “It decreases uses. It decreases medical costs. It needs to be done,” said Des Aulniers. “Why isn’t everyone in favor of raising the tax?”

Andrea Shipley of the Idaho Community Action Network (ICAN) said that cuts made in the last two years to Medicaid and public education are the result of a Legislature unwilling to look at tax and fee hikes. “We do not have a budget crisis,” said Shipley. “We have a revenue crisis.”

And what revenue a tax hike could bring in. Jack Miller of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare contended that Idaho could raise as much as an additional $77 million in taxpayer dollars annually for program. He also said that smoking-related illnesses cost taxpayers as much as $236 million each year in health care expenses, with $83 million of that being paid out by the Medicaid program.

Idaho charges 57 cent per pack of cigarettes. Lake’s measure – as well as a similar one drawn up by Rusche – would hike that figure by $1.25. Idaho’s tax per pack is the eighth-lowest in the nation.

But a hike of the tax wouldn’t necessarily mean lower smoking rates for Idahoans, however. Dan John of the Idaho State Tax Commission told Democrats that when rates are raised, citizens will often look elsewhere to find cheap cigarettes. “If you double the tax, you are not going to get double the revenue,” said John.

One presenter, Corey Jackson of Capitol Distributing, told lawmakers there are more than 8 million Internet sites through which smokers can purchase untaxed cigarettes. Jackson said that a hike in the state’s tax would fuel these sites and mean fewer dollars for the state and local businesses. “It’s going to cost jobs,” said Jackson. “It’s going to hurt people.”

Menthol cigs don't pose greater risk

The tobacco industry argues in a report to the Food and Drug Administration that menthol cigarettes aren't riskier than regular cigarettes.

The industry is trying to defend a lucrative business as the agency weighs whether to ban the minty flavoring.

According to a summary obtained by The Associated Press, the industry says it believes there's no scientific basis to regulate the menthol any differently. It concludes that menthol cigarettes don't make it easier for people to start, harder for them to quit or raise their risk of disease.

An FDA advisory panel meets Thursday and Friday to discuss its own report on the impact of menthol.

Draft chapters of the panel's report show while menthol cigarettes may not be more risky, use is high among minorities, teenagers and low-income people.

New bill would raise cigarette tax $1

Another year has brought another legislative discussion on hiking cigarette taxes to Raleigh, but support in the General Assembly may have eroded with 2010’s Republican takeover.

Laurinburg’s N.C. Sen. Bill Purcell and N.C. Rep. Jennifer Weiss, a Wake County Democrat, introduced identical bills in both houses in Raleigh Tuesday to raise the state tax on a pack of cigarettes by $1. The current state rate is $.45, which ranks as the seventh lowest in the nation, and this would bring the state tax to the national median, as well as raising $300 million for the state annually.

Bill’s Benefits

After a morning press conference in Raleigh, Purcell, a retired pediatrician, explained his support for the tax hike is primarily based on the public health issue smoking poses, especially among youth. Even he, though, expressed doubts over whether it will clear both hurdles of the General Assembly, where Republican majorities have promised to fight tax increases.

Purcell has previously introduced bills moving to hike state taxes on cigarettes, including in [2009].

“From my standpoint, it’s a health issue, and that’s why I’m pushing this,” Purcell said Tuesday. “The Republicans have said ‘No,’ (in preliminary talks about the tax increase), but a recent poll shows over 60 percent of Republicans in the state support raising the tax, and so do over 70 percent of Democrats. The other thing is that it will bring in about $300 million for the state budget.”

At the morning press conference, Purcell appeared alongside Weiss and representatives of the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society and a former state health director, among others, where research was presented that each time the tax is raised on cigarettes drives down teen smoking.

The American Lung Association also gave North Carolina an ‘F’ for tobacco control in January, specifically citing the low state tax on tobacco products.

“We increased it a couple of years ago by 10 cents, but a significant increase like this would be even more helpful in stopping kids from starting to smoke,” Purcell said, also citing the cost to treat patients on Medicaid and Medicare with respiratory conditions caused or exacerbated by smoking.

Read more: Richmond County Daily Journal - New bill would raise cigarette tax 1

Ban smoking in state prisons?

Even if you haven’t watched The Shawshank Redemption, you probably know that for years cigarettes were the coin of the realm in prisons.

Inmates traded them, swapped them with guards for favors, and, of course, smoked them. Some of those smokers in for long sentences eventually got sick, and state taxpayers covered their treatment.

In Florida, that’s about to end. Under new Department of Corrections Secretary Edwin Buss, state prisons are going smoke-free. Inmates will have six months to quit, with the state offering help. After that, it’s cold turkey. Guards will get isolated places on the grounds to smoke.

It’s hard to disagree with the change. All but the few wrongfully convicted inmates are inside for violating society’s rules. If those paying for prisoners’ care can’t get medical care, why should the inmates? The only question might be whether cigarettes just become another form of contraband, only with a higher value. It’s illegal, after all, to have illegal drugs and weapons in prisons, but both get in now. At Florida State Prison, a grisly display shows the homemade weapons that have been confiscated.

Mostly, though, we agree with the change. Inmates lose their freedoms while doing their time. We support the ban on smoking in Florida prisons. What do you think? Take our poll.

Volunteers needed for LGBT cigarette smoking survey

If you are LGBT and smoke cigarettes, you can participate in a national and anonymous survey study on reasons for adult LGBT tobacco use. The purpose of the study is to better understand ways of being, thinking and feeling that influence adult LGBT cigarette smoking.

The study is being conducted by Dr. Darrell Greene and Dr. Paula Britton, through John Carroll University and the JCU Education and Allied Studies Department. Your participation contributes to understanding the causes of cigarette use in the LGBT communities, and it helps counselors help LGBT smokers seeking help.

Quit Smoking By Smashing Virtual Cigarette Butts On Your iPhone

Are you trying to quit smoking? Do you like fiddling around with your phone? Perfect! Nicot, a $6 iOS app developed from a study by the Canada Research Chair in Clinical Cyberpsychology and the University of Quebec in Outaouais, charges smokers to crush virtual cigarettes in hopes that it will help them vanquish real ones too.

In a study of nearly 100 smokers, those who crushed the digital cigs (as opposed to playing with virtual balls) in four weekly sessions were 15 per cent more likely to be successful in quitting smoking. Using the app in combination with other aids, like patches or gum, increased that success rate to 50 per cent. And if $US5 for an app seems a bit steep, remind yourself how much you’re paying for a pack these days.