Every day, people around the world light up some 15 billion cigarettes. This addiction to tobacco has reached epidemic proportions, according to the World Health Organization in Geneva. In hopes of curbing the escalating health and economic toll associated with tobacco use, negotiators from around the world drafted a tobacco treaty in May at the 56th World Health Assembly. On June 16, the first day the document was open for signatures of support, 28 nations and the European Community signed on.
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