( CNN ) -- Tobacco has been ingrained in our society since our nation 's earliest days . But if cigarettes were introduced today , they 'd most likely never be approved for market . For an example of changing attitudes , just Friday , a Florida jury handed R.J. Reynolds $ 23.6 billion in damages in a lawsuit filed by the widow of Michael Johnson Sr. , a smoker who died at the young age of 36 from lung cancer , leaving her to raise their two children -- an award that will , of course , be appealed . So the announcement of a merger between America 's second- and third-largest tobacco companies , R.J. Reynolds and Lorillard , feels like a lost episode of `` Mad Men . '' What other industry is permitted to sell a product that , if used as intended , kills half of its consumers ? That 's not only a dysfunctional public health policy ; it 's the worst business strategy ever . Imagine the immediate recalls if any other product killed half its customers . What if each Google search or Facebook post took a day off your life ? Of course , tobacco has an ingredient that no other consumer product has : nicotine , a substance as addictive as heroin . It 's a sure-fire recipe for consumer loyalty to a deadly product , used by companies that have been determined by the federal courts to be liars and racketeers , guilty of putting profits ahead of public health . About 70 % of smokers want to quit , but many find it very difficult . This year , we learned another reason why . The Massachusetts Department of Public Health released data showing that between 1999 and 2011 , levels of inhaled nicotine in cigarettes had gradually increased by 15 % . Quitting is a herculean task , even for the most motivated . Yet there is some positive news . Despite the nicotine manipulation and the nearly $ 9 billion that Big Tobacco spends each year marketing its deadly products , smoking rates have declined dramatically over the past several decades . Today , youth smoking prevalence is below 10 % , and adult smoking rates are at 18 % . Clean indoor air initiatives , increased excise taxes and bold anti-tobacco public education campaigns like Legacy Foundation 's Truth , the FDA 's the Real Cost and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 's Tips from Former Smokers are formidable weapons against the ever-evolving strategies of the tobacco companies . If stronger standards were adopted , like a ban on menthol or a reduction in nicotine levels in cigarettes , then public health officials could help consumers even more . With the U.S. cigarette market in decline , it should n't come as a surprise that these companies want to join forces . Both have business models that depend on securing `` replacement smokers '' -- a term coined by R.J. Reynolds -- for the 480,000 who die each year from the effects of smoking tobacco in the U.S. alone . Sadly , every day , about 2,100 young people who have been occasional smokers progress to become daily smokers , easily filling the consumer pipeline so vital to meet and exceed their bottom lines . R.J. Reynolds and Lorillard produce Camel and Newport , two of the top cigarette brands young people most often buy . By reducing competition , cutting costs and brainstorming for new strategies , the merger will no doubt try to find new users to make loads of money domestically and worldwide . Of course , there is an alternative -- though highly unlikely -- ending to this story . Merging two tobacco giants and consolidating their research , development , marketing and financial power could be used to invent technologies that bring an end to the burned tobacco horror story of the past century . While the jury is still out on the peril or promise of e-cigarettes , would n't it be wonderful if this merger became an opportunity to push reset ? Should n't the tobacco industry be challenged to introduce products to the marketplace that provide consumer pleasure without the unbearable pain of lung cancer , prostate cancer , pancreatic cancer and heart disease ? If that could become a reality , we might finally put combustible tobacco -- packed with all its lethal tar and carcinogens -- in the history books for good . Unless this scenario happens , let 's not kid ourselves . These companies are jockeying to meet their financial targets , satisfy their shareholders and sell as much deadly tobacco to Americans as they possibly can . Until they truly turn over a new leaf , nearly half a million American lives will continue to go up in smoke each year .
Koval : If cigarettes were introduced 36 , they 'd never be approved for market . two : Attitudes are changing ; Camel lost lawsuit filed by widow of lung cancer victim . Koval : Now , two giant tobacco companies are merging , which seems like a throwback . She says merger could be opportunity to create product that does n't kill Koval its users .