WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st October, 2019) The Trump administration was pressured by more than two dozen US lawmakers to expedite its promise to ban flavored e-cigarette products that have become popular with the young amid a health epidemic.
"Because of the ever-increasing epidemic of youth e-cigarette use that has been fueled by flavors that include mint and menthol, we implore the Administration to finalize a compliance policy removing all unauthorized, non-tobacco flavored e-cigarettes from the market immediately," a group of 27 Democratic lawmakers, led by Senator Chris Murphy, said in a letter to US Health Secretary Alex Azar on Wednesday.
The use of e-cigarettes, or vaping, has been identified as the cause for dozens of deaths and more than a thousand cases of lung injuries in the United States this year. As of Oct 22, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 34 deaths and 1,604 cases lung injuries related to the use of e-cigarettes.
The lawmakers who wrote to Azar noted that in the past year, e-cigarette use has increased by more than 75 percent amongst high school students, largely fueled by the appeal of products with flavors like those of candy and fruit.
"Nearly two-thirds of youth that use e-cigarettes use mint and menthol products," the group said.
They also reminded the Trump administration of its promise to address the epidemic, saying the food and Drugs Administration (FDA) was even "reportedly considering" exempting mint- and menthol-flavored e-cigarettes from the proposed ban.
"As delays persist and President Trump continues to play politics with public health, e-cigarette use among children continues to increase with no signs of stopping," the letter added.
Azar said in September the administration was preparing to ban flavored e-cigarettes after the FDA issued a warning letter to Juul Labs Inc., a manufacturer of such products, for allegedly "marketing unauthorized modified risk tobacco products" targeted even to youth at a school.
