Susan LissExecutive Director

Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids

TPPA and Tobacco Products:

A Threat to Public Health and The Case for Excluding Tobacco

Products

TPPA Stakeholder ForumChicago

September 10, 2011

• Over the last 15 years, CTFK has played a major role in enacting tobacco control measures at the state, federal and international levels.

•In the USA, CTFK coordinated advocacy efforts that resulted in

•Congress granting FDA authority to regulate tobacco products•Largest federal tobacco tax increase in history•Restrictions on distribution of cigarettes through the mail

•Globally, CTFK was heavily involved in negotiations around the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the world’s first public health treaty.

•As one of five partners in the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use, CTFK has provided technical or financial assistance in 85 low- and middle-income countries.

Who is CTFK?

Reduce Tobacco Use & Its Toll on Health by:

•Preventing youth from starting to smoke, dip, chew

•Helping tobacco users quit

•Protecting everyone from secondhand smoke

•Saving lives and healthcare dollars

CTFK Mission

Trade and Tobacco Control:

Irreconcilable Conflict?

Free Trade Goals

Tobacco Control Goals

•Fewer tobacco consumers•Fewer tobacco products•Higher tobacco prices

•More consumers •More products•Lower prices

Why? Tobacco products are uniquely hazardous and highly addictive consumer products.

Chile

Brunei

USA New Zealand Peru

Australia

Malaysia

Singapore

Tobacco Productsare the only

consumer productsthat kill

when used as directed.

Tobacco is Addictive and Use Starts Mainly Among Children

“The ability to attract new smokers and develop them into a young adult franchise is key to brand development.”1999 Philip Morris report, "Five-Year Trends 1988-1992."

In the 20th Century, tobacco products

killed 100 Millionpeople worldwide.

In 2010, tobacco products

killed nearly 6 Million

people worldwide.

Unless government takes dramatic steps…

By 2030,80%

of tobacco-caused deaths will be in

developing countries.

In the 21th Century, tobacco products

will kill 1 Billion

people worldwide.

Without action to stop this epidemic,

Tobacco Devastates Economies• High health-care costs • $96b: U.S. annual public and private

health care expenditures caused by smoking

• Tobacco-caused deaths result in lost economic opportunities because half of these deaths occur during prime productive working years. • $97b: U.S. annual productivity loss

caused by smoking .

World Reacts to the Crisis • The world’s first

public health treaty• Only treaty

designed to reduce use of a consumer product

• 184 countries have signed, ratified or acceded

• All TPP trade partners are signatories

Parties Obligations Under the FCTC• Requires effective measures to reduce tobacco

supply and demand including:– Strong health warnings on packs– Elimination of misleading packaging and labeling

that likely creates the false impression about the product’s health effects

– Comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship

– 100% smoke-free indoor public places, indoor workplaces, and public transportation

• Unanimously-adopted guidelines detail how Parties can meet their obligations

World Reacts to the Crisis • Tackling global health

crisis caused by increase of cancer, heart disease, lung disease and diabetes

• Second time in U.N. history that the General Assembly will meet with Heads of State on an emerging health issue

• WHOs Global Status Report on NCDs (Apr. 2011) lists tobacco control policies as 4 of 10 “Best Buys”

U.N. High Level Meeting

on Non-Communicable

Diseases (NCD) New York. Sept. 19-

20

A Sample* of FCTC Protections

by TPP Partners

Countries’ Tobacco Control Efforts are Saving Lives

U.S.A. – Smoking rates in the U.S. have dropped

dramatically over the past several decades, falling from 42.4% in 1965 to 19.3% in 2010.

– Fewer U.S. adults are smoking, and those who do smoke are, on average, smoking less.

– Reductions in smoking have helped reduce the rates of cancer, heart disease, and other illnesses.

– But tobacco still kills more than 400,000 Americans each year.

Countries’ Tobacco Control Efforts are Saving Lives

AustraliaOver two

decades of tobacco

control efforts, including

advertising bans, strong

graphic health warnings, and

smoke-free environments

Countries’ Tobacco Control Efforts are Saving Lives

26.6 25.2 20.0 21.3 19.20

5

10

15

20

25

30

1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Year

Percent

Data sources: 1997 = 1996/97 New Zealand Health Survey (NZHS); 2003 = 2002/03 NZHS; 2007 = 2006/07 NZHS; 2008 = 2008 New Zealand Tobacco Use Survey (NZTUS); 2009 = 2009 NZTUSNote: Age standardised to the WHO world population.

Daily smoking among those aged 15–64 years, 1997–2009 (age-standardised

prevalence)New Zealand

As early as 1984, the

Government instituted a

tobacco control

program and has

consistently regulated tobacco

products.

Trade Challenges to Domestic Public Health

Laws1995: RJR threatens Canada under NAFTA

over plain packaging2008: PMI subsidiary v. Turkey over packaging

claiming violation of Paris Convention and TRIPS

2009: PMI v. Ireland in EU over retail display ban2010: PMI v. Uruguay under BIT over packaging 2010: Indonesia v. US under WTO over cloves2010: PMI v. Norway in EU over retail display

ban2011: PMI threatens Australia over plain

packaging

Trade Challenges to Domestic Public Health

Laws1995: RJR threatens Canada under NAFTA

over plain packaging2008: PMI subsidiary v. Turkey over packaging

claiming violation of Paris Convention and TRIPS

2009: PMI v. Ireland in EU over retail display ban2010: PMI v. Uruguay under BIT over packaging 2010: Indonesia v. US under WTO over cloves2010: PMI v. Norway in EU over retail display

ban2011: PMI threatens Australia over plain

packaging

Threats of an International Trade

Dispute Create a Chilling Effect

Causing countries to back away from enacting tobacco control laws.

The TPAA Should be the First Trade Agreement to Recognize that Controlling

the Global Tobacco Epidemic

Requires a Change to Trade Priorities

TPPA Should Reprioritize Public Health

The Easiest Solution

Exclude Tobacco Products from the TPPA and

Acknowledge that Public Health Goals Take

Precedence over Trade Goals

Other Solutions Are Complicated and Less

EffectiveA clear exception for tobacco

productsfrom relevant provisions (TBT, IP, investor-state,

transparency, etc) would be a marked improvement

BUT This approach permits second-guessing

of legitimate, good faith efforts as being more trade restrictive than

necessary and could create new or unintended

complications.

 Anything other than

exclusion of tobacco products may continue the chilling effect

of threatened lawsuits, preventing countries from

enacting public health protections

for their citizens.

Exclude Tobacco Products

Susan LissExecutive Director

sliss@tobaccofreekids.org+1-202-296-5469

www.tobaccofreekids.org

Thank You.