Tobacco-related diseases are the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, causing more than 438,000 deaths each year. Each day, more than 1,140 kids become regular smokers -- and one-third of them will ultimately die from their habit. The tobacco companies spend more than $15.15 billion a year marketing their deadly products -- preying on our children, who make up the "replacement generation" of smokers. In August 2006, U.S. District Court Judge Gladys Kessler correctly concluded that tobacco companies have engaged in a long-term, fraudulent scheme to mislead the American people about the health risks of smoking, the addictiveness of their products, and their tactics for marketing their products to children. In her decision, Judge Kessler wrote that the tobacco companies have "marketed and sold their lethal products with zeal, with deception, with a single-minded focus on their financial success, and without regard for the human tragedy or social costs that success exacted." Unless this important legislation becomes law, the tobacco companies will continue to aggressively market their products to children and lie about the health consequences of smoking. The American Lung Association is committed to working with Congress to ensure that the legislation becomes law in 2007. American Lung Association

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