Trump Administration to Ban Certain Flavors of E-Cigarettes
The Primary: President Trump announced his administration will ban certain flavors of e-cigarettes, saying the fruity flavors attract children to develop nicotine addictions and harmful lung diseases.
Who? What? Why?: Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said that the FDA will be pulling all flavored e-cigarettes from the U.S. market, leaving only tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes. The move comes in the midst of a growing epidemic of youth e-cigarette users and Melania Trump’s statement calling for a ban on vapes.
The Baseline: Juul Labs, responsible for the popular Juul e-cigarette, acknowledged the danger of supplying fruity flavors and said it will comply with whatever regulations the FDA puts in place.
From the Left: Former NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg and Matt Meyers of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids say a ban is of utmost importance at a time of serious epidemic. While e-cigarettes were intended to help tobacco smokers quit, they argue that the product has largely created more smokers instead.
From the Right: Brad Polumbo of the Washington Examiner says e-cigarettes are certainly more healthy than cigarettes and banning them is not only going to increase the smoking population but also create an unnecessary “nanny state” of over-regulation.