{"id":860,"date":"2024-04-27T12:04:48","date_gmt":"2024-04-27T12:04:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/27\/biden-administration-delays-proposed-ban-on-menthol-cigarettes\/"},"modified":"2024-04-27T12:04:48","modified_gmt":"2024-04-27T12:04:48","slug":"biden-administration-delays-proposed-ban-on-menthol-cigarettes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/retirednurseblog.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/27\/biden-administration-delays-proposed-ban-on-menthol-cigarettes\/","title":{"rendered":"Biden administration delays proposed ban on menthol cigarettes"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A proposed ban on menthol cigarettes in the US \u201cwill take significantly more time,\u201d US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement Friday,\u00a0delaying a decision that had posed political risks for President Joe Biden as he runs for re-election. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis rule has garnered historic attention and the public comment period has yielded an immense amount of feedback, including from various elements of the civil rights and criminal justice movement,\u201d Becerra said. \u201cIt\u2019s clear that there are still more conversations to have, and that will take significantly more time.\u201d <\/p>\n

An administration official declined to specify further what the current timeline for a final decision might be, saying there was a need to speak with more groups and work through the concerns that have been raised. \u201cHard to put a timeline on that,\u201d the official said. <\/p>\n

All flavors in cigarettes were banned in\u00a02009, but menthol was left out after\u00a0lobbying from the industry.\u00a0The\u00a0US Food and Drug Administration\u00a0first said in April 2022 that it would ban the\u00a0popular mint flavor, setting a deadline of August 2023. In October, the FDA sent final rules to the White House Office of Management and Budget for\u00a0review,\u00a0a key regulatory step.\u00a0It\u2019s still listed as \u201cpending.\u201d <\/p>\n

The FDA had set a March deadline for action on the rule, but when there was no movement, a coalition of civil rights and medical organizations sued the\u00a0agency this month. <\/p>\n

Menthol cigarettes have become a\u00a0pivotal issue\u00a0for Biden, who is facing an election year with concerns over a\u00a0dropoff in turnout\u00a0from Black voters. <\/p>\n

Minority groups, especially Black people, have been\u00a0aggressively targeted\u00a0with menthol marketing by tobacco companies, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and menthol cigarettes\u00a0have contributed to widened health disparities. <\/p>\n

Some civil rights leaders with connections to the tobacco industry have\u00a0expressed concerns to the White House\u00a0that a ban would criminalize menthol cigarettes and lead to an increase in deadly police interactions. Meanwhile, the NAACP and the Congressional Black Caucus have endorsed the ban,\u00a0along with dozens of public health experts,\u00a0saying it would save hundreds of thousands of Black lives. <\/p>\n

The FDA\u2019s proposed rule would ban the manufacturing and sale of menthols but would not police smokers themselves. <\/p>\n

Proponents of\u00a0a ban\u00a0said they\u2019re disturbed by the delay. <\/p>\n

Derrick Johnson, president of the NAACP, said in a statement Friday that the move is \u201ca blow to the Black community, who continue to be unfairly targeted and unjustly killed by Big Tobacco. Let\u2019s be clear \u2013 valuing Black lives should not be used as a pawn to get our people to the polls, but rather a platform that our leaders refuse to step down from. The NAACP is outraged and disgusted, but we refuse to be deterred.\u201d <\/p>\n

Nancy Brown, CEO of the American Heart Association, noted in a statement that it\u2019s been two years since the administration released \u201cproposed rules backed by extensive scientific evidence\u201d and said that \u201cinaction is enabling the tobacco industry to continue aggressively marketing these products and attracting and addicting new users.\u201d <\/p>\n

American Lung Association spokesperson Erika Sward said in a statement that the decision to delay action \u201cis deeply troubling and does not reflect the science or the response from the civil rights community, including the NAACP, that these rules would save lives and prevent kids\u00a0from\u00a0starting to smoke. The Lung Association is deeply disturbed that President Biden has failed to do what he has promised, which is to follow the science and to reduce deaths and cancer.\u201d <\/p>\n

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