 |
|||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Legal Info and News
Landmark Ruling in Electronic Cigarette Case: Victory for Vapers!!!
| Consumer advocacy group responds to electronic cigarette ruling. |
PR Log (Press Release) – Jan 15, 2010 – Federal Judge Richard Leon on Thursday ordered the FDA to lift the restriction on importation of electronic cigarettes, a decision being celebrated by hundreds of thousands of former smokers who have come to rely on the product.
The FDA stopped importation and seized shipments of some electronic cigarettes last year, claiming the product was a drug delivery device. Judge Leon sternly disagreed and ruled that the shipments be released. In his decision, Leon stated, "This case appears to be yet another example of FDA's aggressive efforts to regulate recreational tobacco products as drugs or devices under the FDCA" and that the FDA's "tenacious drive to maximize its regulatory power has resulted in its advocacy of an interpretation of the relevant law that I find, at first blush, to be unreasonable and unacceptable."
Spike Babaian, president of the consumer advocacy group, National Vapers Club, issued the following statement: "We commend Judge Leon for his sound decision. This paves the way for consumer groups like ours and for e-cigarette industry groups, like the Electronic Cigarette Association, to work with lawmakers to ensure safe regulation of these products. We can now continue our collaboration with legislators to address safety issues, to ensure quality control, and to enforce restriction of sales to minors."
According to the American Heart Association, most smokers are either actively trying to quit or want to quit. Despite this fact, as well as aggressive anti-smoking campaigns, rising cigarette prices, and the well-known health problems caused by smoking, the CDC reports that the number of smokers increased for the first time in decades from 2007 to 2008. Many public health experts agree that offering smokers a less harmful alternative is crucial. Some smokers make the switch to smokeless tobacco, but many continue smoking due to long-term behavioral habits.
Even the parent company of Phillip Morris, USA, the nation's largest cigarette manufacturer, recognizes the need to provide adult smokers with a more viable alternative to smoking. Its formal statement to the FDA describes the need to "address the significant differences in experience between cigarette smoking and smokeless tobacco use, such as taste, smell, and ritual."
Ironically, what may be the most viable alternative to smoking did not come from tobacco companies. Electronic cigarettes, invented in China, have been on the market in a number of countries since 2004 without any report of adverse effects. Judge Leon noted in his ruling that, in the US alone, e-cigarette companies "have already sold hundreds of thousands of electronic cigarettes, yet FDA cites no evidence that those electronic cigarettes have endangered anyone."
The FDA stopped importation and seized shipments of some electronic cigarettes last year, claiming the product was a drug delivery device. Judge Leon sternly disagreed and ruled that the shipments be released. In his decision, Leon stated, "This case appears to be yet another example of FDA's aggressive efforts to regulate recreational tobacco products as drugs or devices under the FDCA" and that the FDA's "tenacious drive to maximize its regulatory power has resulted in its advocacy of an interpretation of the relevant law that I find, at first blush, to be unreasonable and unacceptable."
Spike Babaian, president of the consumer advocacy group, National Vapers Club, issued the following statement: "We commend Judge Leon for his sound decision. This paves the way for consumer groups like ours and for e-cigarette industry groups, like the Electronic Cigarette Association, to work with lawmakers to ensure safe regulation of these products. We can now continue our collaboration with legislators to address safety issues, to ensure quality control, and to enforce restriction of sales to minors."
According to the American Heart Association, most smokers are either actively trying to quit or want to quit. Despite this fact, as well as aggressive anti-smoking campaigns, rising cigarette prices, and the well-known health problems caused by smoking, the CDC reports that the number of smokers increased for the first time in decades from 2007 to 2008. Many public health experts agree that offering smokers a less harmful alternative is crucial. Some smokers make the switch to smokeless tobacco, but many continue smoking due to long-term behavioral habits.
Even the parent company of Phillip Morris, USA, the nation's largest cigarette manufacturer, recognizes the need to provide adult smokers with a more viable alternative to smoking. Its formal statement to the FDA describes the need to "address the significant differences in experience between cigarette smoking and smokeless tobacco use, such as taste, smell, and ritual."
Ironically, what may be the most viable alternative to smoking did not come from tobacco companies. Electronic cigarettes, invented in China, have been on the market in a number of countries since 2004 without any report of adverse effects. Judge Leon noted in his ruling that, in the US alone, e-cigarette companies "have already sold hundreds of thousands of electronic cigarettes, yet FDA cites no evidence that those electronic cigarettes have endangered anyone."