The AMA supports the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposal to ban menthol-flavored cigarettes, a move that will save hundreds of thousands of lives in the coming decades while reducing health inequities.
The AMA joined a 2020 lawsuit (PDF) to compel the FDA to fulfill its mandate to take action on the agency’s own conclusions that banning the sale of menthol-flavored cigarettes would benefit the public’s health.
AMA President Gerald E. Harmon, MD, said the organization was pleased the FDA is moving to “finally remove these harmful products from the market.”
“For far too long, tobacco companies have used menthol-flavored products to prey on young people, particularly Black youth,” he said, describing the rule as “long overdue.”
If the rule is finalized, it “will be a big step toward preventing a new generation from becoming addicted to tobacco products and suffering unnecessary harm, including death,” added Dr. Harmon, a family physician in South Carolina. “We will continue to support policies and initiatives that will keep tobacco products out of the hands of our nation’s youth and work to address this leading cause of preventable disease and death.”
Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable death worldwide. Smoking-related illnesses are the leading causes of death among Black people, and 85% of African Americans who smoke use menthol cigarettes.
The proposed rule represents an “important step to advance health equity by significantly reducing tobacco-related health disparities,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra.
Andis Robeznieks – American Medical Association – 2022-06-06.
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