The Food and Drug Administration is committed to issuing tobacco product standards for menthol in cigarettes and flavored cigars in “the coming months,” FDA press officer Jim McKinney told CSP Daily News.
In the 2022 Unified Regulatory Agenda and Regulatory Plan, which outlines regulatory actions federal agencies are considering, the FDA said it expected to publish the rule on banning menthol as a characterizing flavor in cigarettes and banning flavors in cigars by August. However, as of mid-September, the rules had not been released.
“As we’ve made clear, these rules remain at the very top of our priorities,” McKinney said. “Evidence shows that flavored tobacco products appeal to youth and also shows that youth may be more likely to initiate tobacco use with such products.”
Final regulations go through an extensive rulemaking process, he said, and the FDA had more than 250,000 public comments to review for these rules.
“The FDA is working to publish the rules in a timely fashion while ensuring this input has been appropriately reviewed and addressed,” McKinney said, adding that the Unified Agenda lists estimates for when rules might be completed, and often changes.
“Since publishing the proposed rules in April of 2022, the FDA has continued to work vigorously toward finalizing both product standards,” he said. “We will continue to be as transparent as possible and provide updates on the status of these rules as they become available.”
The FDA proposed a product standard in April 2022 that would prohibit the use of menthol as a characterizing flavor in cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco and heat-not-burn products. It also said it planned to ban characterizing flavors in cigars, including menthol, to decrease the likelihood of experimentation and the development of nicotine dependence.
Opponents of the bans have said banning menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars will only exacerbate existing illicit trade of tobacco products.
The FDA has also said it will require tobacco companies to reduce the nicotine in all cigarettes sold in the United States to minimal or nonaddictive levels. The agency plans to do this by October, according to the Unified Regulatory Agenda. After that, it would still have to follow a nine-step rulemaking process before the new regulation is potentially adopted. McKinney did not have an update on whether that timeline was still accurate.