VTA Statement: Response to Biden Administration’s Menthol Cigarette Delay

Published on April 29, 2024

WASHINGTON – April 26, 2024 – The following statement is attributable to Tony Abboud, executive director of the Vapor Technology Association (VTA):

“VTA applauds the decision by the Biden Administration to delay a proposed ban on menthol flavored cigarettes, not because they should not ban menthol cigarettes, but because it reflects a healthy suspicion of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) recent hypocritical actions of rushing more than 800 new cigarettes to market over the last two years while simultaneously banning all less harmful flavored e-cigarettes.

In addition to listening to their constituents, the Administration’s delayed decision recognizes that absent a diverse marketplace filled with less harmful e-cigarettes, menthol smokers will have nowhere to turn — other than a black market. VTA is once again calling on the FDA to stop approving cigarettes pushed by Big Tobacco and authorize a diverse range of flavored nicotine options for smokers looking to quit.”