From the NY Times -
Mr. Sylvia, the Altria spokesman, said the company had been seeking F.D.A. regulation of tobacco since 2001, shortly after the Supreme Court rejected an F.D.A. effort to assert legal authority over nicotine as a drug. The court, in a 5-4 decision, said F.D.A. lacked Congressional authority.
So, Philip Morris wanted the recent tobacco legislation to pass so they could keep cases out of the courts. This year they got it. Finally.
Altria, the parent company of Philip Morris, just like the Big Banks and Insurance companies doesn't want "state-by-state regulations and the product liability lawsuits".
While the tobacco bill expressly allows such lawsuits to continue, legal experts expect tobacco lawyers to argue that the new F.D.A. oversight confers federal authorization on their products.
Basically, it's like what happened with the Office of the Currency Comptroller when they blocked states from suing the Big Banks to stop their insidious practices.
So, it looks like, depending on the Administration, the disposition of the particular Courts, the FDA could be used as a tool like the OCC to tie up litigation or actions for years.
State's rights aren't the only thing affected by the new law.
"The way you beatthe tobacco companies is the old-fashioned way: you beat them," said Stanton A. Glantz, the founder and director of the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at the University of California, San Francisco, and a professor of cardiology there. "Going into partnership with them or cutting deals with them, there’s not single case anytime anywhere in the world where that’s worked."
Glantz also noted a provision in that allows two (non-voting, but still influential) tobacco industry representatives to sit on a new F.D.A. scientific advisory committee.
Since the F.D.A. is unlikely to approve new tobacco products, this will lock up and tighten Philip Morris' grip. The restrictions on tobacco advertising and marketing, will also do the same while increasing Philip Morris' profits and its ability to spend more on lobbying.
Restrictions on tobacco advertising are already adding to the company's bottom line, as the annual report makes clear: "Marketing and selling expenses were lower, reflecting regulatory restrictions on advertising and promotion activities."