As part of its commitment to tackle youth e-cigarette consumption, the Trump Administration has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is finalizing a compliance policy prioritizing the enforcement of premarket authorization requirements for non-tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes.
The move comes after a 2016 ruling which required electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) products to file premarket tobacco product applications with the FDA within two years. The compliance policy the FDA will unveil in the coming weeks will address non-tobacco-flavored e-cigarette products that lack premarket authorization moving forward.
Related: Michigan Institutes Ban on Flavored E-Cigarettes
“The Trump Administration is making it clear that we intend to clear the market of flavored e-cigarettes to reverse the deeply concerning epidemic of youth e-cigarette use that is impacting children, families, schools and communities,” said Health and Human Services secretary Alex Azar in a press release from the agency. “We will not stand idly by as these products become an on-ramp to combustible cigarettes or nicotine addiction for a generation of youth.”
To date, the agency has issued more than 8,600 warning letters and 1,000 fines to retailers for sales of ENDS and their components to minors; additionally, it has collaborated with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for the removal of dozens of “e-liquid products resembling kid-friendly juice boxes, cereal and candy.”
