Eight Senate Democrats Urge FDA to Ban Use of Menthol in Cigarettes
Eight Democratic senators on Aug. 22 urged the Food and Drug Administration to ban the sale of menthol cigarettes in the U.S. A letter to FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb led by Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., cites an FDA scientific assessment…
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and “numerous independent studies” indicating that menthol cigarettes are linked with increased nicotine dependence in young smokers and make it more difficult to quit smoking. A 2011 FDA report found that removal of menthol from cigarettes would benefit public health, the letter says. While the agency issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking in 2013, no action has yet been taken. The FDA recently indicated it will issue another ANPRM on the role of flavors, including menthol, in “attracting youth smokers,” but it’s unclear what benefits another notice would produce, given the hitherto significant public comment and data the FDA has received on menthol, the senators wrote. The letter also asked FDA to tell them, by the close of business Sept. 18, the steps it has taken to address the risk of menthol in cigarettes since the 2013 ANPRM, the factors contributing to FDA’s “delay” in finalizing action to remove menthol from cigarettes, and a timeline for FDA finalizing regulations to address the risk of menthol in cigarettes.