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to be answered. A lot more fact-finding. I hear Congressman Bliley 

 using words like spiking — ^there is a lot more information that this 

 Agency needs to understand and a lot more data. 



Once we have that data, we need to assess. Also, I don't think 

 we have the answers yet on what the public health consequences 

 would be of reducing or eliminating nicotine. We need to under- 

 stand that issue. If the Agency were hypothetically to exert juris- 

 diction, how should nicotine be regulated? What is the right way? 



If you lower the dose of nicotine just a little, people may end up 

 smoking more cigarettes. If you lower it below addictive levels, 

 maybe no one will smoke. So the question becomes how should nic- 

 otine be regulated, and I don't think that we have thought through 

 that or the public health community or the regulators or the Con- 

 gress. I think we need to do work in that area. 



Mr. Wyden. My only point here is that I think it is a mistake 

 for the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act to be silent on this issue. I 

 would rather see us pass a Synar bill and say regulate. If we can't 

 get that passed, I hope you will go forward and try to build a 

 record, play out the facts to show that this is a drug, and let me 

 commend you on a first-rate job. 



I think this is a hearing that the country is going to look back 

 on in the next century and say this is a hearing that made a dif- 

 ference for our kids and grandkids and I commend you for it. 



Mr. Waxman. I want to thank you as well. I want to close this 

 part of our hearing today by playing the following statement out 

 for maybe later witnesses to comment. 



What you have told us very clearly without any controversy is 

 that nicotine is addicting, it is the reason people continue to smoke. 

 When kids get started, they get hooked. We have over 400,000 peo- 

 ple die each year from smoking tobacco. This nicotine addiction is 

 something we now know that at least one tobacco company knew 

 about, and I believe they all knew about it. They carefully regulate 

 the amount of nicotine in this cigarette product, and it seems that 

 the major reason this manipulation of nicotine takes place is to as- 

 sure there is enough there to addict people. 



I can't understand why we allow cigarettes with nicotine at all 

 if it doesn't add to the flavor, and it only adds to the addiction of 

 it. You may or may not have the legal authority to insist that nico- 

 tine be removed. 



We certainly have the legal authority to impose that on the in- 

 dustry, and I would like to know from them why they would insist 

 on having nicotine in their product at any level if it only serves the 

 purpose of addicting people to that product. 



I wish the tobacco company executives were here so we could ask 

 them directly. I would like to know from the Philip Morris Com- 

 pany that filed a lawsuit yesterday charging that ABC television 

 should pay them $10 million in damages because they reported the 

 fact that nicotine is manipulated in tobacco. 



I would like to know from Philip Morris, and I wish the head of 

 Philip Morris had accepted our invitation, why they allow any lev- 

 els of nicotine whatsoever, and I want to hear from other witnesses 

 today what they have to say about this issue because it seems to 

 me that is one of the core questions that is before us. You have 



