[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 59 (Tuesday, March 28, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15467-15468]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-4438]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


State-of-the-Science Conference: Tobacco Use: Prevention, 
Cessation and Control; Notice

    Notice is hereby given of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 
``State-of-the-Science Conference on Tobacco Use: Prevention, 
Cessation, and Control'' to be held June 12-14, 2006, in the NIH 
Natcher Conference Center, 45 Center Drive, Bethesda, Maryland 20892. 
The conference will begin at 8:30 a.m. on June 12 and 13, and at 9 a.m. 
on June 14, and will be open to the public.
    Tobacco use remains the Nation's leading preventable cause of 
premature death. Each year, more than 440,000 Americans die from 
disease caused by tobacco use, accounting for one in every five deaths. 
Cigarette smoking alone is responsible for more than 30 percent of 
cancer deaths annually in the U.S., and

[[Page 15468]]

smoking is also an important cause of death from heart disease, stroke, 
and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Currently, there are an 
estimated 44.5 million (21 percent) adult smokers and an estimated 3.75 
million (22%) high school student smokers in the U.S. Cigarettes are 
the predominant form of tobacco consumed; however, other forms of 
tobacco, such as smokeless tobacco, cigars, and pipes, are also used. 
In addition to the toll in human lives, tobacco use places an enormous 
economic burden on society. For 1995 to 1999, estimated annual smoking-
attributable economic costs in the U.S. were $75.5 billion for direct 
medical care for adults and $81.9 billion for lost productivity.
    Despite enormous progress in reducing the prevalence of tobacco use 
in the U.S, it is unlikely that the Healthy People 2010 objectives of 
reducing smoking prevalence to 12 percent or less in adults and 16 
percent or less in youth will be reached on schedule. A better 
understanding of how effective strategies for prevention and treatment 
can be developed and implemented across diverse segments of the 
population is crucial to accelerate progress; meeting the Healthy 
People 2010 prevalence goals is projected to prevent an additional 7.1 
million premature deaths after 2010.
    For this reason, the National Cancer Institute and the National 
Institutes of Health's Office of Medical Applications of Research will 
sponsor a State-of-the-Science Conference on Tobacco Use: Prevention, 
Cessation, and Control, June 12-14, 2006, in Bethesda, Maryland. The 
key questions to be addressed at the State-of-the-Science Conference 
are:
     What are the effective population- and community-based 
interventions to prevent tobacco use in adolescents and young adults, 
including among diverse populations?
     What are the effective strategies for increasing consumer 
demand for and use of proven individually oriented cessation 
treatments, including among diverse populations?
     What are the effective strategies for increasing the 
implementation of proven population-level tobacco-use cessation 
strategies, particularly by healthcare systems and communities?
     What is the effect of smokeless-tobacco-product marketing 
and use on population harm from tobacco use?
     What is the effectiveness of prevention and of cessation 
intervention in populations with co-occurring morbidities and risk 
behaviors?
     What research is needed to make the most progress and 
greatest public health gains nationally and internationally?
    At the conference, invited experts will present information 
pertinent to these questions, and a systematic literature review 
prepared under contract with the Agency for Healthcare Research and 
Quality (AHRQ) will be summarized. Conference attendees will have ample 
time to ask questions and provide statements during open discussion 
periods.
    After weighing the scientific evidence, an unbiased, independent 
panel will prepare and present a State-of-the-Science statement 
addressing the key conference questions. The panel will also hold a 
press conference to address questions from the media. The draft 
statement will be published online later that day, and the final 
version will be released approximately six weeks later.
    This conference is intended for researchers interested in tobacco 
prevention, cessation, and control; health care professionals; health 
care system professionals; health policy experts; public health 
practitioners; and interested members of the public.
    The primary sponsors of this meeting are the NIH National Cancer 
Institute and the NIH Office of Medical Applications of Research; there 
are fifteen cosponsors from NIH and other HHS agencies.
    Advance information about the conference and conference 
registration materials may be obtained from American Institutes for 
Research of Silver Spring, Maryland, by calling 888-644-2667, or by 
sending e-mail to [email protected]. American Institutes for 
Research's mailing address is 10720 Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 
20901. Registration information is also available on the NIH Consensus 
Development Program Web site at 

http://consensus.nih.gov.

    Please note: The NIH has recently instituted new security 
measures to ensure the safety of NIH employees and property. All 
visitors must be prepared to show a photo ID upon request. Visitors 
may be required to pass through a metal detector and have bags, 
backpacks, or purses inspected or x-rayed as they enter NIH 
buildings. For more information about the new security measures at 
NIH, please visit the Web site at 

http://www.nih.gov/about/visitorsecurity.htm.


    Dated: March 20, 2006.
Raynard S. Kington,
Deputy Director, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. E6-4438 Filed 3-27-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P