Read articles from United States of America

December 20, 2023 by thehill.com

Early next year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expected to issue a final rule prohibiting the sale of menthol cigarettes, as well as a separate rule prohibiting the sale of flavored cigars. In October, the FDA sent these two rules, which collectively could prevent hundreds of thousands of premature deaths, to the White House for final review. The recent announcement that these rules will not be finalized until 2024 is disappointing, particularly because these regulations are already long overdue. Indeed, the need for them was obvious back in 2009, when Congress passed the Tobacco Control Act (TCA), granting the FDA authority to regulate tobacco products.

December 20, 2023 by reuters.com

Juul Labs said on Tuesday it was seeking U.S. authorization for its new menthol-flavored pods, which require user age verification, to be used with its e-cigarette device that is under review by regulators. Juul's e-cigarettes were briefly banned in the U.S. in June 2022 after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concluded the company had failed to show that the sale of its products would be appropriate for public health. Following an appeal, the health regulator put the ban on hold and agreed to an additional review of Juul's marketing application. The company's new menthol-flavored pods have a nicotine concentration of 18 mg/mL and are Juul's latest premarket tobacco product application to the FDA.

December 15, 2023 by cnn.com

The US Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday the seizure of about 1.4 million units of unauthorized e-cigarette products, including commonly used brands such as Elf Bar and Funky Republic, which has received warnings from the agency over the sale and distribution of unauthorized products that appeal to minors. “Unscrupulous companies try everything they can to bring unauthorized, youth-appealing tobacco products into the country,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf said in a statement. “The FDA will remain vigilant, and together with our federal partners, stop these imports before they make it into the hands of our nation’s youth.”

December 13, 2023 by brown.edu

The Brown University School of Public Health has built an international reputation for producing impactful research on nicotine addiction and smoking cessation. Work pioneered at Brown by the Center of Alcohol and Addiction Studies starting in the 1980s advocated for a change in the nation’s attitude toward alcohol and tobacco dependence. Those efforts have expanded and flourished since the establishment of the School of Public Health a decade ago: Brown now boasts dozens of faculty members working to help people quit smoking. Among the leading scholars in this domain, Dr. Jasjit S. Ahluwalia and Dr. Jennifer Tidey, stand out as pioneering scholars and advocates for tobacco harm reduction.

December 13, 2023 by dailycaller.com

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently published the long-awaited results for the 2023 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS). This annual assessment surveys American middle and high school students on the use of various tobacco and vapor products, from cigars and cigarettes to e-cigarettes and smokeless and other novel tobacco products. There is phenomenal news – youth vaping is down and youth use of traditional tobacco products is at historic lows. And, the numbers show that adult use of e-cigarettes has increased, meaning that more adults are turning to less harmful tobacco (and non-tobacco) options for their nicotine. 

December 12, 2023 by medscape.com

I'm Dr Neil Skolnik, and today I will talk about a 2023 American Heart Association Scientific Statement on the cardiopulmonary impact of electronic cigarettes and vaping. This snuck up on us. The FDA tried to keep vaping products out of the United States, based on the rationale that they are a drug delivery device. That was brought to litigation by the companies that make vaping products, and the FDA lost in court in 2010.

December 11, 2023 by nytimes.com

The Biden administration delayed a decision on Wednesday about whether it would ban menthol cigarettes amid intense lobbying from tobacco companies, convenience stores and industry-backed groups that contend that billions of dollars in sales and jobs will be lost. The proposal has also generated concerns that Black smokers will become the targets of aggressive police tactics, although some Black leaders, top lawmakers and government officials dispute that and say that tobacco companies are financing and fueling those fears.

December 08, 2023 by carolinajournal.com

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is in the final stages of advancing a proposed rule that would ban the sale of menthol cigarettes. Such a draconian prohibitionist policy is not necessary, because smoking rates are among their lowest levels ever recorded in the Tar Heel State. More problematic is that the FDA is failing to consider the negative externalities that will be caused by such a ban and its cost on North Carolina taxpayers. Simply put, there is no need for a menthol ban in North Carolina, as smoking rates among youth and adults are at some of the lowest rates recorded.

December 05, 2023 by filtermag.org

Earlier this year, Dr. Robert Califf, commissioner of the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), emerged as a vocal advocate against misinformation in the public health domain. A commitment to combating the real problem of health rumors and falsehoods is commendable. But Califf’s recent statements regarding tobacco harm reduction reveal a concerning level of misinformation of his own—and the distinct whiff of hypocrisy.

December 05, 2023 by reason.org

Youth vaping in the United States has hit a 10-year low, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The so-called youth vaping epidemic appears to be a thing of the past, with historical lows in youth smoking dispelling fears of a gateway effect. The focus of anti-tobacco advocates and policymakers, however, remains disproportionately fixated on youth vaping, diverting attention and resources away from those at the greatest and most immediate risk of tobacco-related disease and death: adult smokers.