Smoking Out E-Cigarettes

Although cigarette smoking rates have consistently declined since 1965, the recent popularity among consumers of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) may disrupt this trend. ENDS products typically refer to battery-operated inhaler devices such as electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), pod-based products such as JUULs, and vape pens that produce an aerosol after heating a liquid. Flavored solutions that consumers inhale from e-cigarettes or vapes and then exhale can include nicotine and other chemicals. The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has regulated traditional tobacco products since 2009. But the agency extended its regulatory authority over ENDS products in 2016 and finalized its enforcement policy in 2020 due to “epidemic levels of youth use of e-cigarettes and the popularity of certain products among children.” The “Deeming Rule,” which expanded FDA’s regulatory authority to “cover all products that meet the definition of a tobacco product” under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, now regulates ENDS products and parts, pipe tobacco, cigars, hookah, and e-cigarette flavored solutions in addition to traditional cigarettes and tobacco. FDA’s concern about increased use of ENDS products is not unfounded. According to the American Lung Association, between 2011 and 2019, e-cigarette use increased by 1,650 percent among middle school students and 1,733 percent among high school students. Critics of FDA’s increased regulatory authority, however, claim that too much regulation could “push many adults who quit smoking with vaping” back to smoking traditional cigarettes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, suggest that even if e-cigarettes could benefit some adults, more research is needed on safe substitutes for adults working to quit smoking. This week’s Saturday Seminar examines proposals focused on the regulation of e-cigarettes