Trump administration set to ban flavored e-cigarettes in the wake of increasing vaping-related deaths
The Trump administration might have found it less easy in arriving at a decision on the rampant gun culture in the country, but it has acted fast in the wake of the mysterious lung disease that has left at least six people dead and several hundred sick after they took to vaping.
The fatal consequences of using e-cigarettes has left authorities baffled with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention probing 450 cases of lung conditions across 33 states that might have links to vaping.
The administration has, as a countermeasure, been preparing to ban flavored e-cigarettes after health officials called for restrictions to check the spread of the lung disease. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar confirmed this to the media on Wednesday, September 11.
According to a report in CNBC, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is at the moment busy finalizing the guidance to remove all non-tobacco flavors of e-cigarettes from the market in a month's time.
These include substances like mint and menthol. It has been learned that companies can restart their flavors on a later date but only after submitting a formal application and receiving approval from the FDA.
Move comes after FDA slams e-cig maker Juul
The escalation came just a couple of days after the FDA slammed e-cigarette manufacturer Juul that claimed, as its marketing mantra, that its product is better than others using tobacco.
They even assured students saying their e-cigs were harmless. Juul has come under strong criticism for encouraging children to take to e-smoking with popular flavors like mango and creme. The rise of vaping among children has been termed as an "epidemic" by America's health officials and that is why authorities plan to ban them, till at least the FDA can review their safety, Azar said after meeting Trump at the White House on Wednesday.
"The Trump Administration is making it clear that we intend to clear the market of flavored e-cigarettes to reverse the deeply concerning epidemic of youth e-cigarette use that is impacting children, families, schools and communities," the health secretary said in a statement. "We will not stand idle as these products become an on-ramp to combustible cigarettes or nicotine addiction for a generation of youth," he said.
Azar, however, added that it could take several weeks for the FDA to develop the guidelines. He said this while interacting with reporters outside the White House and he had FDA Commissioner Norman Sharpless by his side.
The Department of Health and Human Services cited in its press release Sharpless thanking Trump and Azar for their support for the agency’s efforts to curb use of e-cigarettes. He called the administration’s move for the ban a bold one and felt that once finalized, the compliance policy will serve as a powerful tool for the FDA to combat the menace of using e-cigarettes among the youth. “We must act swiftly against flavored e-cigarette products that are especially attractive to children. Moreover, if we see a migration to tobacco-flavored products by kids, we will take additional steps to address youth use of these products,” Sharpless said.
Juul agrees to toe the line
Juul also agreed to abide by the rules after drawing flak. Its spokesperson told CNBC that the company agreed with the necessity for aggressive action on flavored products and would fully comply with the final FDA policy that comes into effect. The administration's move also has its critics. Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Association(AVA), criticized the ban plan and said that it would "remove life-changing options from the market."
In a statement issued on Wednesday, September 11, Conley said: “We are deeply disappointed in the President’s decision to take direction from anti-vaping activists like Mike Bloomberg by attempting to ban the sale of nearly every vaping product on the market. A ban will remove life-changing options from the market that have been used by several million American adults to quit smoking.”
Conley added that prohibition has never worked in the US, whether it is in case with alcohol and marijuana and it will not with e-cigarettes either. He called the government’s plan to ban flavored e-cigarettes as “draconian” and strongly felt that such a ban will only lead to the creation of yet another multibillion-dollar black market that will operate with zero safety controls.
When contacted by MEAWW, Conley said: “Banning flavors in nicotine vaping products won't stop illnesses caused by contaminated THC products”.
'Poor quality street vapes containing THC are responsible'
The AVA said in a news report that there is no reason to worry for nicotine vapers and smokers. It said the evidence gathered about the reported deaths so far indicate that only poor quality street vapes containing THC or other substances are responsible for these deaths.
Efforts to ban flavored e-cigarettes has already started picking up with Michigan becoming the first state to do so in the first week of September. Members of the Congress are also putting more pressure on the administration to put curbs on the e-cigarette industry.
The development also had an impact on the business part. CNBC reported that while shares of Altria, which owns 35 percent stake in Juul, fell by less than a percent, its competitors PMI Group, British American Tobacco, Japan Tobacco and others rose by between one and three percent in midday trading.