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FDA v. BROWN & WILLIAMSON TOBACCO CORP.

Opinion of the Court

people die each year from tobacco-related illnesses, such
Ibid.
as cancer, respiratory illnesses, and heart disease.”
The agency also determined that the only way to reduce the
amount of tobacco-related illness and mortality was to re-
duce the level of addiction, a goal that could be accomplished
only by preventing children and adolescents from starting to
use tobacco.
Id., at 44398–44399. The FDA found that 82%
of adult smokers had their ﬁrst cigarette before the age of
18, and more than half had already become regular smokers
by that age.
It also found that children were
beginning to smoke at a younger age, that the prevalence
of youth smoking had recently increased, and that similar
Id., at
problems existed with respect to smokeless tobacco.
44398–44399. The FDA accordingly concluded that if “the
number of children and adolescents who begin tobacco use
can be substantially diminished, tobacco-related illness can
be correspondingly reduced because data suggest that any-
one who does not begin smoking in childhood or adolescence
is unlikely ever to begin.”

Id., at 44399.

Id., at 44398.

Based on these ﬁndings, the FDA promulgated regulations
concerning tobacco products’ promotion, labeling, and acces-
sibility to children and adolescents. See id., at 44615–44618.
The access regulations prohibit the sale of cigarettes or
smokeless tobacco to persons younger than 18; require retail-
ers to verify through photo identiﬁcation the age of all pur-
chasers younger than 27; prohibit the sale of cigarettes in
quantities smaller than 20; prohibit the distribution of free
samples; and prohibit sales through self-service displays and
vending machines except in adult-only locations.
Id., at
44616–44617. The promotion regulations require that any
print advertising appear in a black-and-white, text-only for-
mat unless the publication in which it appears is read almost
exclusively by adults; prohibit outdoor advertising within
1,000 feet of any public playground or school; prohibit the
distribution of any promotional items, such as T-shirts or
hats, bearing the manufacturer’s brand name; and prohibit a