Senator Hassan: Trump Administration “Caving to Corporate Special Interests” by Walking Back Proposed E-Cigarette Flavor Ban

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan released the following statement today in response to reports that the Trump Administration is walking back its proposed e-cigarette flavor ban. This decision comes only two months after the President announced that he planned to ban most flavored e-cigarettes, which have been linked to an increase in youth e-cigarette use. According to a recently released report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Survey, New Hampshire has the highest percentage of high school students in the nation reporting daily use of e-cigarettes.

“It appears that the Trump Administration is caving to corporate special interests and walking back its proposed ban on flavored e-cigarettes,” Senator Hassan said. “As we learn more about the dire consequences of this public health crisis – including that according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, it is likely that only four percent of kids who become addicted to nicotine are going to successfully quit – the federal government must act to prevent even more kids from becoming addicted. I will continue working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to push the Administration to fulfill its promise and ban flavored e-cigarette products, including flavors popular with young people like menthol and mint.”

Last week during a Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing, Senator Hassan pressed Mitch Zeller, Director of the Center for Tobacco Products at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), on the FDA’s delayed response in banning flavored e-cigarettes. Senator Hassan told Mr. Zeller, “You’ve had plenty of time already – and kids and people, Americans all over this country, are being hurt and they are addicted.”

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