WASHINGTON (AP) — White House officials will take more time to review a broad plan by U.S. health regulators to ban menthol cigarettes, an unexpected delay that anti-tobacco groups say could derail the long-awaited rule .
Administration officials indicated Wednesday that the process will continue next year, targeting March to implement the rule, according to an updated regulatory agenda posted online. Previously, the rule was expected to be published in late 2023 or early January.
The Food and Drug Administration spent years developing a plan to eliminate menthol, estimating that it could prevent 300,000 to 650,000 deaths from smoking over several decades. Most of these preventable deaths are believed to be among Black Americans, who disproportionately smoke menthols.
Previous FDA efforts on menthol have been thwarted by reluctance from the tobacco industry or the competing policy priorities of multiple administrations. This latest delay comes amid continued concerns among some Democrats about President Joe Biden’s prospects in a rematch against Donald Trump.
Anti-smoking groups have spent years supporting this effort. And some warned Wednesday that the proposal, which would give cigarette makers a year to phase out the flavor, could be delayed indefinitely.
“Any delay in finalizing the FDA’s menthol rule would be a gift to the tobacco industry at the expense of Black lives,” said Yolanda Richardson, CEO of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. “We urge the administration to keep its promise and issue a final rule by the end of this year. »
Menthol is the only cigarette flavor that was not banned by the 2009 law that gave the FDA authority over tobacco products. The cooling effect of the flavor makes it easier to start smoking and more difficult to quit, which explains the popularity of menthol. It is estimated that 85% of black smokers purchase menthols.
FDA officials sent their final version of the rule to the White House Office of Management and Budget in October, usually the last step before issuing a rule.
But the White House agreed to hold dozens of meetings with groups opposed to the rule, including civil rights advocates, business owners and law enforcement officials. In almost all cases, groups opposed to the ban received donations from tobacco companies.
More than 60 meetings on the rule have been scheduled with members of the budget office, and discussions are expected to extend into January, according to a government website. So far, only three of the meetings have been with health groups, records show.
These meetings highlight the attention this issue is attracting from prominent African American leaders and senior members of the Biden administration.
A Nov. 20 meeting brought together civil rights attorney Ben Crump and Kendrick Meek, a former congressman who is now a lobbyist at a law firm whose clients include the tobacco company Reynolds American. More than two dozen government officials also attended the virtual meeting, including Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Robert Califf and Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra.
The meeting was requested by the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Officials, which has received funding from cigarette companies including Reynolds. The group ran ads in local Washington media warning that a menthol ban would harm relations between police and the communities they serve.
The FDA and health advocates have long dismissed these concerns, emphasizing that FDA enforcement of the rule would only apply to companies that make or sell cigarettes, not individual smokers.
___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Education Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
