Cass R. Sunstein, Columnist

The FDA’s Smart New Graphic Cigarette Labels

American smokers may soon get a clear lesson on health risks every time they pick up a pack.

August 19, 2019 at 10:30 AM UTC

Cass R. Sunstein is a former Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He is the author of “The Cost-Benefit Revolution” and a co-author of “Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth and Happiness.”

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Photographer: American Cancer Society via Getty Images

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Can a new regulation be something to celebrate? If it stands to save lives, absolutely.

Here’s one that does: the Food and Drug Administration’s new proposal requiring warnings, including graphic images, on cigarette packages and in cigarette advertisements. The regulation, now out for a 60-day comment period, also appears to fix the problems that hobbled previous attempts to mandate graphic cigarette warnings.