FDA Sued for Inaction on Menthol Ban

June 17, 2020 The African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council (AATCLC) and the association Action on Smoking and Health US (ASH) held a virtual press conference announcing their joint complaint against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). By failing to ban menthol along with other flavors, the complaint points to the lack of action by the relevant authorities to protect the lives of thousands of Americans, particularly African Americans, from tobacco-related deaths.

Preventing avoidable deaths

This lawsuit highlights the FDA's failures to remove menthol tobacco products from shelves. In 2009, Congress passed - and President Obama signed into law - the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. This law establishes a ban on flavors in cigarettes but excludes menthol from this ban, subject to additional research. In 2011, the FDA advisory committee concluded after a review of scientific knowledge that "Removing menthol cigarettes from the market would benefit public health in the United States" Two years later, a report from the same institution established that if menthol cigarettes had been withdrawn from the market in 2010, Around 17,000 premature deaths would have been avoided by 2020 and around 2.3 million people would not have started smoking[1].

Despite these facts, the FDA has not begun the rulemaking process to eliminate menthol from cigarettes. By continuing to delay the ban, the plaintiffs believe that the FDA and the U.S. government have failed to protect the health of American citizens, particularly African Americans. They also point out that the United States is now lagging behind the global process of banning menthol.

“ Now is the time for the FDA to step up and do what it was supposed to do years ago - ban the sale of all flavored tobacco products. " said Dr. Phillip Gardiner, founding member and co-chair of AATCLC.

Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable death worldwide. Tobacco-related diseases are notably the leading cause of death in the African-American community, 85% of African-American smokers now smoke menthol cigarettes[2].

AATCLC and ASH call on all tobacco control organizations and public authorities in other countries to support this action against the FDA as a matter of health promotion.

To read the full complaint (in English)

©Tobacco Free Generation

[1] FDA, Statement from FDA Commission Scott Gottlieb, MD, on proposed new steps to protect youth by preventing access to flavored tobacco products and banning menthol in cigarettes

[2] https://www.generationsanstabac.org/article/strategie-cigarettiers-menthol-interdiction-mai-2020/

©National Committee Against Smoking |