This May, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enacted a new rule expanding their authority to monitor a wider range of tobacco related products including e-cigarettes and other vaporized nicotine devices. In light of this new policy, the tobacco industry has launched aggressive new efforts in Washington D.C. to block the FDA in order to ensure E- cigarettes remain securely on the market. Spearheaded by The Altria Group, which oversees the tobacco powerhouse Philip Morris, this initiative now involves over 75 lobbyists from both major political parties. This new rule, which was set to go into effect last month, enacts the first federal law prohibiting any sale, including online sales, of e-cigarettes to anyone under the age of 18.
Tobacco companies are hardly strangers to Washington D.C. It has not yet been 20 years since the Master Settlement Agreement of 1998 in which the major tobacco companies were ordered to pay significant amounts money as reparations for the harm their products caused on the American public. These recent lobbying efforts mark the industry’s latest backlash against lawmakers and public health officials. This current tension is a reflection of the constant intersection between government, industry and public health. To find out more about the latest FDA rules regarding e-cigarettes, or for more information about nicotine safety, Destination Health EU recommends you visit fda.gov.
[1] Singh T, Arrazola RA, Corey CG, et al. Tobacco Use Among Middle and High School Students — United States, 2011–2015. MMWR Morb Mortal
[2] Christoph, Meike Paschke, Svetlana Kruschinski, Frank Henkler, Jürgen Hahn, and Andreas Luch. "Chemical Hazards Present in Liquids and Vapors of Electronic Cigarettes." Archives of Toxicology Arch Toxicol 88.7 (2014): 1295-308. Web.