Trump Administration Weighs Ban on Flavored E-Cigarettes
Sitting in the Oval Office with Alex M. Azar II, the secretary of Health and Human Services, and Dr. Ned Sharpless, the acting Food and Drug Administration commissioner, President Trump acknowledged that there was a vaping problem, and said, “We’re going to have to do something about it.”
Mr. Azar said that the F.D.A. would outline a plan within the coming weeks for removing most flavored e-cigarettes that are not tobacco products from the market.
Pressure also began to mount as Michael R. Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York, decided to step in by announcing a $160 million push to ban flavored e-cigarettes. Long an opponent of traditional smoking, the former mayor said his organization, Bloomberg Philanthropies, would seek prohibitions of flavored e-cigarettes in at least 20 cities and states.
From left, Dr. Norman Sharpless, the acting F.D.A. commissioner, Melania Trump, President Trump and Alex M. Azar II, the health and human services secretary, discussing flavored e-cigarettes in the Oval Office on Wednesday.
And so it begins......
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration said Wednesday it plans to ban the sale of non-tobacco-flavored electronic cigarettes amid a vaping crisis.
“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,” Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement. “We will not stand idly by as these products become an on-ramp to combustible cigarettes or nicotine addiction for a generation of youth.”
Michigan became the first state to prohibit sales of most flavored e-cigarettes last week in a bold move to curb the underage vaping epidemic. The ban, which will take effect in a few weeks, will cover both online and in-store sales of all e-cigarette flavors except tobacco.
Trump administration plans to ban sale of flavored electronic cigarettes
Juul threw millions of dollars at Washington. It hasn’t bought much.
Juul Labs has spent millions of dollars on lobbying, hired high-profile Trump administration officials, and blanketed Washington with ads touting its efforts against underage vaping.
None of that was enough to keep President Donald Trump from moving to ban flavored e-cigarettes on Wednesday, delivering a blow to the dominant vaping company and its rivals.
“Vaping has become a very big business as I understand it, a giant business in a very short period of time,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, sitting alongside Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar. “But we can't allow people to get sick and we can't have our youth be so affected.”
Neither Trump nor Azar mentioned Juul in their remarks. But Scott Gottlieb, who pressed for greater regulation of vaping as Trump’s Food and Drug Administration commissioner before stepping down earlier this year, said the move would have an outsize impact on the San Francisco-based company.
“This problem was largely created by the cartridge-based Juul products in my opinion,” Gottlieb said in a statement to POLITICO.
So I have been coming on here and reading posts from people like say, in Washington State who are desperately trying to come up with something vapable after the flavor bans came crashing down, and I went on a pretty serious letter writing campaign in response. Here is the answer I got:
"Thank you for writing me regarding your thoughts on banning smoke-free alternatives to combustible tobacco. I appreciate you taking the time to share your concerns.
The Trump Administration recently announced plans to ban the sale of most flavored e-cigarettes as officials in Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continue to investigate more than 450 health cases, including six deaths, related to e-cigarette use. According to HHS Secretary Alex Azar, the FDA intends to introduce a policy that will remove the sale of all flavored e-cigarette flavors except tobacco, until otherwise specified.
I understand that this is an important issue for parents and consumers of e-cigarettes in our district. As your Representative, I will continue to monitor this situation as it develops and will keep your thoughts in mind if any legislative action is taken on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Again, thank you for contacting my office about this important issue. If you would like to receive regular updates on this and other matters, please visit my website (www.demings.house.gov/) to sign up for my e-newsletter.
Sincerely,
Val Butler Demings
Member of Congress"
The part that instantly grabbed my attention was this:
FDA intends to introduce a policy that will remove the sale of all flavored e-cigarette flavors except tobacco, until otherwise specified.
Is this going to happen ahead of the deeming regulations? Is the FDA going to come up behind us and slip this over our heads while we aren't looking? And while vaping is coming under a full frontal assault, tobacco companies are laughing as they continue to kill 1200 people a day - because the spotlight ain't on them anymore.
Trump calls for ending FDA authority for regulating tobacco
Should Congress get onboard with this?
President Trump has proposed removing the Food and Drug Administration's responsibility for tobacco regulation in his latest budget request, a task likely to be met with backlash from tobacco control advocates.
The budget request, released Monday, calls for creating an entirely new agency nested under the Department of Health and Human Services to regulate tobacco products, including e-cigarettes.
Dimitris Agrafiotis (Vaping Greek) -- "double sided...at least we have some laws in place to protect us now. an independent body would have more power so depends on who is running it and the administration if it is good or bad... could be very bad."
Thoughts?
New York Moves to Ban Flavored E-Cigarettes by Emergency Order
Under the plan outlined by Mr. Cuomo on Sunday, the state’s Public Health and Health Planning Council, a little-known regulatory body, would be convened by the health commissioner, Dr. Howard Zucker. The council would then issue an emergency regulation to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes, rules that would take effect immediately.
In surprise move, California governor proposes ban on vaping, similar to Trump's planned policy
The Democratic governor of California launched a plan Monday that is eerily similar to a plan devised one week ago by Republican President Donald Trump. Both plans aim to eradicate widespread usage of flavored e-cigarettes, or vaping, by underage citizens.
More links ...
California Gov. Gavin Newsom takes executive action on vaping and e-cigarettes
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/articles/2019-09-16/new-york-california-ban-some-e-cigarettes
White House abruptly cancels meeting with vaping advocates
The White House abruptly organized — and then quickly canceled — a meeting Thursday with frustrated conservative policy leaders, to try to tamp down anger about a sweeping vaping ban that’s inflamed the Trump administration’s traditional allies, four individuals with knowledge of the meeting told POLITICO.
“A ban on flavored e-cigarettes could cost Trump a second term,” Paul Blair of Americans for Tax Reform argued in a Washington Examiner op-ed last week. The “well-organized vaping constituency could swing the outcome of the Electoral College one way or the other.”
Israel reportedly outlaws flavored vaping pods as it weighs ban on e-cigarettes
The ministry is also weighing a total ban on e-cigarettes.
Israel stubs out flavored tobacco, mulls total ban of e-cigarettes
U.S. Will Move to Ban Flavored E-Cigarettes, Trump Official Says
New York Moves to Ban Flavored E-Cigarettes by Emergency Order
New York Set To Join Michigan In Banning Some E-Cigarettes
As soon as 2 weeks they said on the radio this morning.