By Matthew Perrone
Associated Press
The federal government unveiled its long-awaited plan Thursday to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars, citing the harm they cause especially to black smokers and young people.
"These rules will help prevent children from becoming the next generation of smokers and help adult smokers to quit," Health Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement.
He added that the ban is an "important step in advancing health equity" by reducing disparities in smoking.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stated that the elimination of menthol cigarettes could
prevent between 300,000 and 650,000 deaths in four decades.
Menthol accounts for more than a third of the cigarettes sold in the country;
the mint flavor is preferred by black smokers
and
young people.
The cooling effect of menthol has been shown to mask the hardness of the throat when smoking, making it easier to start and harder to quit.
“If you quit, you win”: New York launches a campaign to get people to quit smoking
Feb. 22, 202201:02
The FDA said it will also try to ban menthol and dozens of other flavors such as grape and strawberry from cigars, which are becoming increasingly popular with young people, especially black teens.
[There are millions of Latino parents without health insurance. "It's living with stress, with fear," says the mother of a child with cancer]
The agency's proposals on cigarettes and cigars are only early drafts and are unlikely to be finalized before next year.
Companies would have one more year to remove their products.
Lawsuits from the tobacco industry could delay the ban for several more years, according to experts.
For now, the FDA will accept comments for two months.
Altria, which sells menthol and flavored cigarettes, said it was against the ban.
"Removing these products from the legal market will push them into unregulated and criminal markets
," the company said in a statement.
"We will continue to participate in this regulatory process for the long term," he added.
The use of electronic cigarettes "is an epidemic" that must be taken seriously, according to an expert
July 29, 202104:29
The FDA has repeatedly tried to get rid of menthol, but has faced pressure from Big Tobacco, members of Congress and conflicting political interests under both Democratic and Republican administrations.
[Five keys for Latino families who need medical coverage in the US]
Regulators have come under legal pressure to make a decision after anti-tobacco and civil rights groups sued the FDA for "unreasonably" delaying action on earlier requests to ban menthol.
Menthol is the only cigarette flavor that was not banned under the 2009 law that gave the FDA authority over tobacco products, an exemption brokered by industry lobbyists.
However, the law instructed the agency to continue to consider a ban.
To date,
the FDA has yet to phase out any traditional tobacco products
, although it has had that authority for more than a decade.
The electronic cigarette may not be as harmless as it seems
March 11, 2018
Last April, the Joe Biden administration pledged to try to ban menthol within a year, responding in part to African-American groups that claim menthol has led to lower quit rates and higher rates of smoking. mortality among the black population.
85% of black smokers consume menthol.
"Blacks are disproportionately dying of heart disease, lung cancer and stroke," said Phillip Gardiner of the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council.
“Menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars are the main vectors of these diseases in black and brown communities, and have been for a long time,” he added.
In 2020, Gardiner's group and several others sued to force the FDA to make a decision on the ban.
More than 12% of US citizens smoke cigarettes,
with rates roughly equal between black and white populations.
Pfizer withdraws smoking cessation drug Chantix after detecting a carcinogenic compound
July 21, 202101:40
In 2019, more than 18 million people smoked menthol cigarettes, with higher rates among youth, blacks and other racial groups, according to the FDA.
Menthol use decreased among white teens between 2011 and 2018, but
not among black and Hispanic teens,
the agency noted.
Thursday's proposals would not apply to e-cigarettes, including leading brands like Juul and Vuse, which include menthol.
The FDA has been conducting a separate review of vaping products and has so far authorized a handful of tobacco-flavored products from small manufacturers.
The FDA made several efforts to begin phasing out menthol cigarettes under both the Obama and Trump administrations, but had never previously released a formal roadmap for how to achieve a ban.
“This is the first time that there has been support from an Administration,” said Mitch Zeller, who recently retired after nine years directing the FDA's tobacco center.
“If these regulations come to fruition, they will become the law of the land and the sale of menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars will be illegal,” he added.
In recent weeks, dozens of interest groups -- for and against the ban -- have met with Biden administration officials to try to influence the proposed rule, which would wipe out billions in tobacco sales.
The Reasons Aspirin May Be Dangerous for Some People (But Good for Others)
April 27, 202201:09
For decades, tobacco companies focused menthol advertising and promotions on black communities, sponsoring music festivals and neighborhood events.
Industry documents released through litigation show that companies viewed menthol cigarettes as a good “starter product” because they were more palatable to teenagers.
Removing menthol would deal a serious blow to tobacco companies
, including Altria, maker of Marlboro, and Reynolds American, which sells major menthol brands Newport and Kool.
With the slow decline in smoking, tobacco companies have diversified into alternative products such as e-cigarettes and tobacco pouches.
But these companies still represent a small part of the sector's sales.
