American Lung Association Urges FDA to Enforce the Law and End Sales of Synthetic Nicotine Products to Protect Kids

Tomorrow is the statutory deadline for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s Center for Tobacco Products to take action on synthetic nicotine products, yet we continue to await action. The American Lung Association’s President and CEO Harold Wimmer issued the following statement in response to the deadline.

"In March, Congress gave clear deadlines to FDA when it passed a law requiring FDA to regulate tobacco products made with synthetic nicotine. If the FDA does not authorize any of these products by tomorrow’s deadline, all synthetic nicotine products will be illegal. The FDA has the tools it needs and now must act to immediately remove these products from the market as Congress required.

“Congress closed the Puff Bar loophole, recognizing that Puff Bar became the most popular e-cigarette brand among youth by exploiting the synthetic nicotine loophole. The company continues to sell e-cigarettes in many kid-friendly flavors like peach ice, mango and strawberry banana. 

“Youth e-cigarette use continues to be a public health crisis. According to the National Youth Tobacco Survey, more than two million middle and high school students used e-cigarettes in 2021. Youth are attracted to fruit- and candy-flavors and are quickly addicted to harmful e-cigarettes. In fact, 26.8% of middle and high school e-cigarette users report Puff Bar as their usual brand. In addition, 43.6% of high school students who use e-cigarettes are vaping regularly (20 or more of the past 30 days), and more than 1 in 4 (27.6%) are vaping daily. This regular use underscores how addicted youth have become to e-cigarettes.   

“On top of the inaction on synthetic nicotine products, the FDA announced in May that it would not finish its review of pre-market tobacco applications for e-cigarettes with tobacco-derived nicotine and other tobacco products until June 2023, which is almost two years past the court-ordered deadline.

“The continued delay by the FDA puts more kids at risk of becoming addicted to these products. We urge FDA to swiftly remove all synthetic nicotine products from the market and put strict enforcement measures in place.”

The Lung Association has resources to prevent tobacco use and help youth quit, specifically designed for schools, parents and teens, including TalkAboutVaping, our Vape-Free Schools Initiative, Not On Tobacco, and more resources available online.

For media interested in speaking with an expert, contact the American Lung Association at Jill.Dale@Lung.org or at 312-940-7001.