Possible ban on menthol cigarettes delayed until 2024
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Federal rules that could ban menthol flavoring in cigarettes have been delayed.
The federal government published its regulatory to-do list on Wednesday. Plans for a rule banning menthol cigarettes was pushed back to March, according to the calendar.
The tobacco industry has been lobbying against the ban.
Harold Wimmer, chief executive officer of the American Lung Association, in a statement, “In the last few weeks, the tobacco industry has increased pressure on the White House to delay or stop the advancement of these rules. The tobacco industry will do anything to protect their profits at the expense of public health.”
The rule banning menthol was originally planned to be finalized by August. The administration later signaled that it would come by the end of the year. Now, it’s scheduled for March.
The Biden administration has a public calendar that tracks meetings around new regulations that are planned. In the past month, 41 meetings have surrounded the menthol flavoring rule; of those, 38 meetings were with tobacco industry groups while the other three were with public health advocacy groups.
“We are still waiting to hear back from them. They have not scheduled a meeting with us yet,” said Erika Sward, the national assistant vice president of advocacy for American Lung Association.
She adds that the group made its request for a meeting with the Biden administration a month ago.
One of the groups to meet with the Biden administration was the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives. A former-lawmaker-turned-lobbyist for the cigarette company Altria was in attendance at the meeting.
One of the arguments the tobacco industry is using against the ban is that it would criminalize the flavor of cigarettes preferred by Black smokers, which would make a black market for menthol cigarettes.
The Biden administration said the appearance of an imbalance in the discussions favoring industry groups stems from how meetings are entered into the public calendar. Individuals within the group can request separate appointments, inflating the total, according to an administration official, who asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak on the record.
The administration said it has not met with all groups that have a stake in the rule and will continue to do that over the coming months.
The administration did not give its reasons for delaying the rule.