FDA announces plan to ban menthol

FDA announces plan to ban menthol

FILE - Menthol cigarettes and other tobacco products are displayed at a store in San Francisco on May 17, 2018. The U.S. government is set to release its long-awaited plan to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. On Thursday, April 28, 2022, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Robert Califf previewed the announcement in congressional testimony, saying the proposal would reduce disease and death among smokers and help many quit. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

(AP) – The U.S. government has released its long-awaited plan to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. The Food and Drug Administration said phasing out the mint-flavored cigarettes would save hundreds of thousands of lives by helping adult smokers quit. Menthol is the only cigarette flavor that was not banned under the 2009 law that gave the FDA authority over tobacco products. The Biden administration has been under pressure from African American groups and health advocates to eliminate the flavor. Menthol accounts for more than a third of cigarettes sold in the U.S, and the mint flavor is overwhelmingly favored by Black smokers and young people.

Photo: FILE – Menthol cigarettes and other tobacco products are displayed at a store in San Francisco on May 17, 2018. The U.S. government is set to release its long-awaited plan to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. On Thursday, April 28, 2022, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Robert Califf previewed the announcement in congressional testimony, saying the proposal would reduce disease and death among smokers and help many quit. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)