The New York Times published a story on July 1on how the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, an organization that promotes American trade and business interests, has been working to block antismoking legislation in many other countries. This news did not go down well with some members of the chamber. The CVS Health Corporation has announced that it will resign from the Chamber of Commerce.
CVS Health stated that the chamber's lobby activity in others countries goes against its mission to improve public health. Last year, CVS Health announced that it would stop selling all tobacco products in its 7,800 locations.
"We were surprised to read recent press reports concerning the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's position on tobacco products outside the United States," David R. Palombi, a senior vice president of CVS Health, said in a statement. "CVS Health's purpose is to help people on their path to better health, and we fundamentally believe tobacco use is in direct conflict with this purpose."
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and its overseas affiliates have lobbied against various types of restrictions on smoking that are being considered in developing countries. These include restrictions on smoking in public places, on advertising and packaging, and requiring graphic warning labels. However, several healthcare or related corporations are members of the chamber, including health insurance company Anthem, the Health Care Service Corporation, the Steward Health Care System of Boston, and the Indiana University Health system. All of these companies support antismoking programs.
The chamber defends its efforts and says it is only looking out for American business interests. "It's unfortunate that a concerted misinformation campaign about the U.S. Chamber's position on smoking has resulted in a company leaving our organization," the chamber said in a statement. "To be clear, the chamber does not support smoking and wants people to quit. At the same time, we support protecting the intellectual property and trademarks of all legal products in all industries and oppose singling out certain industries for discriminatory treatment."
