FDA Vape Ruling Imminent
U.S. Food & Drug Administration to release details of potential ecig ruling
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by Dave Cross
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The vape industry isn’t the only group of people interested. The ranks of do-gooders and truth deniers bent on a mission of prohibition are also invested in the outcome: “The proposed rule came out in April 2014, and last spring they said they would be done by summer. Then last June; they said they’d be done by the end of the summer. I guess they never said which year,” said Matthew Myers of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
The delay in coming to a final decision has been put down to the provision for grandfathering, the backdated date effecting products applying for approval, according to Ray Story from the Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association (TVECA). Currently, it is reported that the date is set to be February 15th, 2007. Any product made after that date and currently being sold would need to apply for approval but, says Story, this action would kill the American vaping industry dead.
The FDA makes the case that it is bound by the date under President Obama’s Family Smoking & Tobacco Control Act but politicians fighting to change this argue differently. A representative for one said: “The argument is bunk. Vaping is not the same as smoking traditional tobacco, and it shouldn’t be treated that way. Vaping is really a proxy war for anti-tobacco forces, and there’s nothing they want more than to continue associating vaping with regular tobacco.”
It is a counter argument that has gained traction and resulted in a step forward in Congress. On Tuesday, a house committee voted to change that date to 30 days after whenever the FDA releases its regulations – thereby absolving independent companies form expensive and unnecessary applications. The vote also included the adoption of other measures such as such as the adoption of labels on vape products that read: “keep out of reach of children,” and “underage sale prohibited.” The amendment will also ban selling vape products from vending machines or being advertised in anything other than magazine targeted at adults.
Guy Bentley, writing for The Libertarian, welcomed the news: “Eve Of Prohibition: 1 Committee Could Stop The FDA Attack On E-Cigarettes.” He reports a representative of the American Vaping Association as saying: “Changing the predicate date will not stop the FDA from regulating vapour products. The FDA will be free to set rigorous product standards and require disclosure of all ingredients in products already on the market. The FDA just won’t be able to set technology back a decade by banning tens of thousands of products for no reason other than the inability of small manufacturers to pay huge fees.”
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
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