Tell the US Chamber of Commerce to stop their global promotion of smoking

I am a general surgeon and I have seen the consequences of smoking on my patients firsthand. I have dedicated my professional career to scientific research and advocacy to reduce the burden of smoking-related disability and death worldwide. Along with organizations like the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, and the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, our efforts led to critical anti-smoking reforms and the landmark Tobacco Master Settlement of 1998, after which tobacco companies experienced plummeting domestic profits.

But today, Big Tobacco is seeing a rebound of profits, despite major US chains like CVS refusing to carry cigarettes. What’s the secret to the turnaround? A New York Times report recently revealed that the United States Chamber of Commerce (the largest lobbying group in the US) has been helping Big Tobacco export its deadly product internationally by lobbying against global anti-smoking efforts championed by the World Health Organization. It’s been a major and lethal success.

Join health experts from around the country in supporting my petition calling on the US Chamber of Commerce to halt all advocacy efforts on behalf of Big Tobacco in other nations. This lobbying is accelerating the dramatic increase of smoking in the developing world.

The US has so much to offer the world in terms of innovation and products. Tell the US Chamber of Commerce to stop its lobbying efforts on behalf of US tobacco companies in opposition to the WHO tobacco control treaty. Tobacco remains the leading cause of preventable death and disability worldwide. The last thing America should be exporting is a preventable public health crisis.