WASHINGTON, D.C. -- It’s been almost a year since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced its proposed deeming regulations for a number of previously un-deemed tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes and cigars. Earlier this month, The Hill reported a group of Senate Democrats voiced their opinion that the time has come for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to finalize those rules.
In a letter authored by Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Jeffery Merkley (D-Ore.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell was urged to publish the final rule before FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg steps down or by the one-year anniversary of the proposed deeming announcement in April.
“As it stands, e-cigarettes are being aggressively marketed to children, and the use of e-cigarettes by minors has skyrocketed in recent years,” the letter reads. “Teen use of e-cigarettes now surpasses use of regular cigarettes, according to recent data from the government-sponsored Monitoring the Future survey. “
And while House Republicans like John Boehner have come out in favor of moving the 2007 grandfather date in order to allow e-vapor products to qualify for the substantial equivalence (SE) pathway (full story here), these senators asked HHS to let the original date stand.
“Because of FDA’s delay in asserting its jurisdiction over other tobacco products, there are likely hundreds of e-cigarette products on the market today without any regulatory review of their consequences for public health,” they said. “Grandfathering of these products would mean these products would never be subject to a review by FDA to determine whether they are appropriate to be sold and essentially undermine consumer protections.”
Click herefor the full story from TheHill.com.
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