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AMA Refuses To Challenge Menthol Exemption In FDA Bill

Some health experts in the US, including seven former Federal health secretaries, have challenged the proposed exemption for menthol from the FDA tobacco legislation’s list of cigarette flavors to be banned, but the American Medical Association (AMA) refused to oppose the exception by voting on June 17th to refer the decision to its board, with AMA President Dr. Ron Davis saying removing the menthol exemption could imperil the bill’s chances of passage. The AMA vote effectively silences members who wanted the organization to challenge the exemption, which reportedly is a compromise with Philip Morris USA, the only industry player backing the legislation and whose Marlboro Menthol is the second largest menthol brand in the country.

The past few weeks have been filled with speculation regarding the fate of H.R. 1108 especially in light of the exemption of menthol in the flavor ban. Philip Morris states, ” Based on our scientific judgment, menthol does not increase the inherent hazards of smoking”. What are your thoughts? Why does the menthol share continue to grow? Why do folks smoke menthol? What affect does this recent development have on the proposed FDA regulation? Do you think tobacco companies use flavors to attract children to smoke? Or is it to offer it’s adult users variety like other consumable industries? If your a retailer do you focus more on the menthol segment today compared to the past? Are you seeing growth in your menthol business?

The Center for Disease Control’s recent study indicating that the low hanging fruit of smokers able and willing to quit has been plucked with the result that in recent years the decline in smoking rates has significantly diminished. This suggests to some that an alternative to cigarette smoking be found to reduce the amount of harm caused by tobacco consumption. Many analysts of smokeless tobacco claim that smokeless is 98% (or as much as 99.9%) less harmful than smoking. Many public health advocates argue that any claims about less harmful forms of tobacco will legitimize the existence of tobacco in the market and refuse to support less harmful forms of tobacco use even though they know that many pharmaceutical products designed for cessation purposes use tobacco-based nicotine. Should the public health community support less harmful tobacco products even if such support may run counter to the out and out anti-tobacco stance that many have taken till this date? If public health fails to support less harmful tobacco products, are they really supportive of public health? Where are you?