US: American Vaping Association Wants More Time for Public Comment on Proposed FDA E-cigarette Regulations

Source from:  al.com 07/11/2014

The American Vaping Association wants the Food and Drug Administration to allow more time for public comment on a federal proposal that would regulate electronic cigarettes.

The public comment period, which was originally scheduled to end July 9 but was extended to Aug. 8, allows U.S. residents to express their thoughts about an FDA proposal that would ban e-smokes for minors under 18, require warning labels and agency approval for new products, not allow the distribution of free samples and prohibit vending machine sales, unless they are in a facility that never admits youth.

The AVA said the FDA's proposal to classify e-cigarettes as tobacco products would "cripple" the burgeoning business.

"FDA's proposed rule would cripple the fast-growing, U.S.-based e-cigarette industry with complicated, expensive and unnecessary regulation," said AVA President Gregory Conley in a statement. "E-cigarettes shouldn't be treated as tobacco products because they are, in fact, anti-tobacco products."

E-cigarettes, which were named one of CitiGroup's top 10 disruptive technologies of 2012, reached nearly $2 billion in sales last year, according to The Associated Press. AL.com reported earlier this year that explosive e-cigarette growth has spurred the opening of several stores in Alabama.

In late June, the FDA had received more than 33,700 public comments on the e-cigarette proposal, AP reports. The AVA wants a deadline extension of at least three months so the agency can gather as much data as possible before ruling on the proposal.

The AVA wants e-cigarette makers and vendors to contact their elected representatives in Congress to discuss what kind of impact the proposed FDA rules would have on the industry.

Conley said the FDA's regulations could put "hundreds or even thousands of e-cigarette companies" out of business.

"The proposed rule would erect regulatory barriers that would be insurmountable for small- and medium-sized e-cigarette companies, effectively handing the e-cigarette market to Big Tobacco," Conley said.

In an unscientific AL.com poll in May asking readers if they believe e-cigarette use should be prohibited in public places, 64.9 percent said no and 35.09 percent said yes. The Orange Beach City Council recently backed off plans to ban e-cigarettes from public buildings and workplaces. Enditem