The Biden administration wants to make the tobacco industry cut back the amount of nicotine in cigarettes sold in the U.S. to non-addictive levels.<\/p>\n
Why it matters: The bid to essentially take the buzz out of smoking cigarettes would be unprecedented in the long-running public health fight to curb tobacco use, which the FDA says leads to more than 480,000 deaths a year.<\/p>\n
Driving the news: The FDA can't actually just ban cigarettes, but can create \"product standards\" that make them less attractive, experts say. So on Tuesday, the agency proposed a rule to establish a maximum nicotine level in cigarettes and other certain finished tobacco products. It is unclear if they would do it at once or gradually.<\/p>\n
What they're saying: \"This would be really historic,\" Dorothy Hatsukami, a professor at the University of Minnesota who researches tobacco policy, told the Wall Street Journal. She's among a number of researchers who study tobacco regulatory science much of it funded by the FDA and examined the positive impact of low-nicotine cigarettes on consumer behavior and health, per WSJ.<\/p>\n
The other side: Critics say the policy move would make little sense.<\/p>\n
Between the lines: One thing backers and critics agree on is the reduction in nicotine could cause confusion among smokers who think cigarettes will become safer.<\/p>\n
The big picture: The FDA first weighed setting a maximum nicotine level in cigarettes in 2018, elevating tobacco regulation to a level not seen since the George H.W. Bush and Clinton administrations.<\/p>\n
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See the rest here: The Biden administration wants to make the tobacco industry cut back the amount of nicotine in cigarettes sold in the U.S. to non-addictive levels. Why it matters: The bid to essentially take the buzz out of smoking cigarettes would be unprecedented in the long-running public health fight to curb tobacco use, which the FDA says leads to more than 480,000 deaths a year. Continue reading
\nBiden administration wants to take the buzz out of cigarettes - Axios<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"