A bill in Congress that would give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the power to regulate tobacco products also would ban all flavored cigarettes -- except menthol. That's an exception that worries many public-health experts, who point out that menthol cigarettes are especially popular among African-Americans.

The New York Times reported May 13 that the bill would prohibit a number of popular cigarette flavorings, including clove and cinnamon, but allows menthol-flavored cigarettes in an apparent concession to the tobacco industry. Menthol cigarettes comprise about a quarter of the $70 billion worth of cigarettes sold in the U.S. each year.

Philip Morris USA relies heavily on sales of menthol cigarettes, and is the only major tobacco firm to endorse the FDA bill.

"I would have been in favor of banning menthol," said Sen Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) "But as a practical matter that simply wasn't doable."

"The bottom line is we want the legislation," said William S. Robinson, executive director of the National African-American Tobacco Prevention Network. "But we want to reserve the right to address this issue at some critical point because of the percentage of people of African descent who use mentholated products."

The legislation does give FDA the power to remove cigarette additives, including menthol, if they are proven to be harmful to smokers.

"I think we can say definitively that menthol induces smoking in the African-American community and subsequently serves as a direct link to African-American death and disease," said Robert G. Robinson, formerly an associate director in the office of smoking and health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Philip Morris contends that there is little evidence that menthol cigarettes are any more addictive or dangerous than other cigarettes, a position backed by rival Lorillard Tobacco.