Week of May 26 Regulatory Intelligence Recap

Trade Press and Regulatory Summary:

• Philip Morris International Response to Stat News Article Regarding IQOS launch in Austin, TX. - PMI

As set out in previous correspondence with STAT, we consider that your conduct to date falls short of the principles stated in STAT Ethics Policy, specifically the first and second stated principle: “We must be dedicated to truth, accuracy, and transparency in our reporting — these principles form the bedrock of our credibility,” and “We are committed to objectivity and to avoiding both bias and the appearance of bias.”

Most notably, STAT is financially supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, as are many of the groups and researchers STAT continues to interview for tobacco and nicotine-related reporting. While STAT claims it “remains editorially independent; these funders are not involved in any decisions about our journalism,” its conduct and reporting suggest the opposite. The consistent lack of adequate opportunity and coverage for those opposed to Bloomberg-funded groups’ misguided and prohibitionist perspectives – even when provided with such, as demonstrated below and by others (example here) – are clear examples of violations of STAT’s own policies.

In conclusion, the claim that our science should be discounted is nothing but an attempt to censor and stymie progress. PMI has provided extensive evidence of the potential reduced risk of IQOS compared with continued smoking. While IQOS is not risk-free, the evidence supports our claims, and we welcome further independent review on our smoke-free products.

• Trump Promised To 'Save Vaping.' His FDA Head Does Not Seem Inclined To Do That. - Reason

During his 2024 campaign, President Donald Trump bragged that he "saved flavored vaping" during his first term and promised that he would "save vaping again." That promise was significant in light of the de facto ban that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had imposed on vaping products in flavors other than tobacco and menthol—a policy that rejects the varieties that former smokers overwhelmingly prefer. But recent comments by Marty Makary, the Trump-appointed FDA administrator, cast doubt on whether he is committed to following through on the president's commitment.

Testifying before a Senate appropriations committee last week, Makary hyped the threat posed by underage vaping, which is the rationale for the FDA's flavor restrictions. In comments he highlighted on his official X account, Makary averred that "there are high schools in America now where kids are saying half of the kids in high school are addicted to these vaping products." Whatever those students might be saying, that statement is hard to reconcile with the latest results from the National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS), which is conducted each year by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the 2024 NYTS, 7.8 percent of high school students reported that they had used e-cigarettes during the previous 30 days. Yet Makary implied that 50 percent of students at certain high schools are "addicted to these vaping products," which is more than six times the nationwide prevalence of past-month use in the 2024 NYTS and about 22 times the rate of daily use (assuming 30 percent of past-month users were daily users, as in the 2023 survey).

• American Medical Association Article Claims that Quitting Smoking by Switching to Vapes is Not Quitting - Michael Siegel

According to an article published two days ago by the American Medical Association, a person who quits smoking completely but still uses non-tobacco-containing vapes has not quit smoking.

Based on this article, a person who quits smoking with the help of a nicotine patch has not actually quit smoking. I'm sure this will come as news to the hundreds of thousands of smokers who have used nicotine replacement as a way to quit. Well I hate to tell the American Medical Association this but electronic cigarettes are a form of nicotine replacement, just like nicotine patches!

However, there's one major difference between nicotine patches and e-cigarettes:

Nicotine patches only work about 10% of the time, while e-cigarettes work at least twice that much. A number of clinical trials have demonstrated that switching to vaping is superior to using traditional nicotine replacement therapy in helping adults quit smoking.

This shows how absurd it is that the American Medical Association accepts switching to a nicotine patch to be quitting smoking but apparently, switching to a nicotine vape is not quitting smoking.

What is going on here? I'll tell you. It's called lifestyle control. The tobacco control movement has largely lost its focus on public health and instead is now focusing on lifestyle control. They promote smoking cessation, but only if you quit the way they want you to quit. They are the ones who get to define what "counts" as quitting smoking, not you. It makes no difference that you are literally saving your life by becoming an exclusive vaper. You are still using nicotine by a mechanism that they despise, so they get to tell you that you've actually not quit smoking, even though you most certainly have.

• [Alabama] New state regulations for vape products set to take effect June 1 - MSN

According to the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board (ABC), all businesses that sell tobacco, tobacco products and/or non-vapor based alternative nicotine must renew their ABC Tobacco permit for the 2025-2026 year. The renewals will begin on June 1 and cost $150.

The ABC Electronic Nicotine Delivery System permit is for any businesses that operate as specialty retailers of electronic nicotine delivery systems. These specialty retailers sell e-liquids, electronic nicotine delivery systems and vapor-based alternative nicotine products, which must meet the requirements of state and federal law. The permit costs $1,000.