“In the five decades since, we’ve learned: that smoking damages nearly every organ in the body; it is responsible for an enormous burden of disease, death and economic cost in the United States; and, exposure to secondhand smoke can have devastating health consequences,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in a statement released by the department. “Yet, since this first report was released, we’ve also shifted the perception of smoking from an accepted national pastime to a discouraged threat to health – and more than halved smoking rates in this country.”
Later this month, the department will release a new Surgeon General’s report on the progress of tobacco control, the statement said.
20 years ago:
On Jan. 11, 1994, the United States and the other allied nations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) created the Partnership for Peace.