The renowned Cole-Bishop Amendment, is a proposed legislation that would exempt existing vaping products from retroactive approval requirements by moving the grandfather date from 2007 to 2017. Hence saving tens of thousands of products that are already on the market from the agency’s impossibly expensive licensing process.
Not surprisingly, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, who was openly pleased when the bill was rejected by Congress last May, spoke against this proposed bill once again, saying that it “would “grandfather” e-cigarettes and cigars already on the market and exempt them from FDA review of their public health impact, including whether they appeal to kids.”
Public Health expert Dr. Michael Siegel believes that the campaign is blatantly lying to alarm the public. He explained that in reality the bill would not in any way stop the FDA from overseeing product standards and impose restrictions.
“The Bishop-Cole bill would not exempt e-cigarettes from FDA review of their public health impact. All it does is to prevent the FDA from requiring expensive and burdensome pre-market applications in order for e-cigarettes to remain on the market. The bill does nothing to take away the FDA’s ability to review the public health impact of these products and to issue product standards, including restrictions on product flavorings, to protect the public’s health.” said Siegel.
Contradicting statements
“In one change this year, the House bill gives the FDA three years to develop a product standard addressing “characterizing flavors” in e-cigarettes. The FDA already has the authority under current law to issue such a product standard, so this provision does not provide the FDA with any new authority,” said the Campaign, while contradicting its earlier statement that the proposed bill would strip the FDA’s authority.
Hence, points out Siegel, this makes it clear that the Campaign is well aware of what the bill entails. When stating that the bill would strip the FDA from any authority, it looks like the the Campaign was purposely spreading inaccurate facts to instill fear in the public.
The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids overlooking an important point
However, even more interestingly, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids is clearly overlooking an important point here. As the Campaign itself stated, the FDA has had the power to impose flavor standards for the last 8 years, however, clearly it has not bothered to issue a single standard so far. Siegel points out that that the Bishop-Cole bill is significant because it forces the FDA to take action and issue standards within 3 years.
Read more : The Rest of the Story:Tobacco News Analysis and Commentary
In your subheading, don’t you mean CFTFK “condemned,” not “condoned?”
Oops serious error there… Definitely condemned!!! Thanks for pointing it out.