Q&A on the FDA’s Flavored E-Cig Policy

After months of considering a complete ban on flavored electronic cigarettes, the Trump administration announced a new policy on Jan. 2 that soon will forbid the sale of some, but not all, flavored vapes.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, the agency responsible for the policy, the change is an attempt to limit the alarming rise in the use of e-cigarettes by teens — who overwhelmingly prefer flavors — while balancing the potential benefits to adults who already smoke.

E-cigarettes may be able to help existing smokers get off combustible cigarettes, which are regarded as more harmful than the electronic versions. But mounting evidence suggests vaping has lured millions of American teens into nicotine addiction and has led some to start smoking.

Separately, a new law, signed by President Donald Trump on Dec. 20, immediately raised the federal minimum age for purchasing tobacco products — including nicotine vaping products — from 18 to 21.

We’ll explain the FDA’s new policy and review the evidence on whether e-cigarettes are likely to have a positive or negative impact on public health.

What is the new vaping policy?

The new policy doesn’t change the letter of the law surrounding vaping, since from the FDA’s perspective, all vapes, as newer tobacco products, need agency authorization to be on the market legally. But in practice, the policy prohibits the production, distribution and sale of all flavored cartridge-based e-cigarettes, with the exception of menthol and tobacco flavors, after Feb. 1. 

After that date, unless a manufacturer can show that an unauthorized flavored cartridge is “appropriate for the protection of public health” and receive FDA authorization, the product will not be allowed on the market. There are no penalties for vape users.

Cartridges, or pods, are enclosed units that hold vaping liquid that when heated in an e-cigarette is aerosolized into a breathable vapor. These designs are very popular among teens, and