04.24.18

Durbin Statement On FDA Announcement Of New Enforcement Actions To Protect Youth & Teens From Using JUUL & Other E-Cigarettes

New enforcement actions come on the heels of Durbin letter to FDA urging the agency to be stronger in its oversight of JUUL

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement regarding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) decision to issue new enforcement actions on JUUL Labs, Inc. and other e-cigarette companies, in order to better protect children and teens from using addictive and dangerous e-cigarettes:  

“Today, the FDA heeded my call and announced positive initial steps to protect our kids from the dangers of tobacco products like the JUUL e-cigarette. By taking one look at a JUUL advertisement, it’s abundantly clear they have dusted off Big Tobacco’s old marketing playbook and are obviously trying to market their products to our children and teens. I’m pleased the FDA agrees that we have to do more to protect our kids from falling into a lifetime of addiction, and I continue to urge the agency to immediately use its existing authority to remove any JUUL flavors—like their kid-popular mango flavor—that are currently on the market in violation of regulations." 

Last week in a letter to the FDA, Durbin and 10 of his Senate colleagues urged the agency to take immediate steps to ban kid-friendly candy and fruit flavorings that are used with e-cigarettes and cigars. In August 2016, the FDA issued the “deeming rule” which deemed e-cigarettes, cigars, and hookahs “tobacco products” and asserted FDA’s ability to regulate them. However, the FDA made a decision last year to delay its regulation of e-cigarette products and flavorings from 2018 to 2022. New products targeted to youth – like JUUL Labs, Inc.’s e-cigarette vaping product - have been able to slip by FDA review. The senators urged FDA to end the delay and begin regulation and review of e-cigarette products now. 

Additionally, Durbin and his colleagues also sent a letter to JUUL asking a series of questions about how their e-cigarette is marketed to children and teens, what ingredients are in the flavorings that accompany these devices, and requests that the company take a series of important steps to limit youth use of their product. You can read that letter here

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