Cigarette Warnings Appeal Rejected

{Washington, D.C.}…Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington denied the government’s request to rehear a challenge to a requirement that tobacco companies put large graphic health warnings on cigarette packages. In August, a three-judge panel upheld a lower court ruling blocking the Food and Drug Administration requirement. Some of the nation's largest tobacco companies sued to block the mandate to include warnings to show the dangers of smoking and encourage smokers to quit lighting up, arguing the proposed warnings went beyond factual information into anti-smoking advocacy. The government argued the photos of dead and diseased smokers are factual. The government has 90 days to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.