Biden’s Final Anti-Tobacco Push: FDA Could Lower Cigarette Nicotine Levels by 98%
By Jake Beardslee ·
January 13, 2025
The Biden administration is preparing to release a groundbreaking rule that could dramatically reduce nicotine levels in tobacco products, potentially marking its final major anti-tobacco initiative before leaving office. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expected to publish the proposed rule as early as Monday, following recent regulatory clearance, according to The Hill. stux / Pixabay
Under President Biden, the FDA announced in 2022 that it was working on a proposed rule to significantly reduce nicotine levels in cigarettes, potentially cutting nicotine content by nearly 98 percent. Initially slated for release in May 2023, the proposal is now, more than 18 months later, nearing publication. Office of the President of the United States / Wikimedia
According to the CDC, smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, claiming over 480,000 lives annually. The FDA estimates that reducing nicotine levels could prevent 33 million people from becoming regular smokers and help 5 million current smokers quit within a year. cherylholt / Pixabay
"Lowering nicotine levels will help millions of people quit smoking and prevent countless others from becoming addicted, sparing families nationwide from the devastating consequences of tobacco-related illnesses and death," Nancy Brown, CEO of the American Heart Association, told The Hill. Alexas_Fotos / Pixabay
However, the rule's future remains uncertain under an incoming Trump administration. Critics, including law enforcement groups, warn that such restrictions could fuel black market sales. "Anytime you create a law where you ban something, you put law enforcement in charge of the enforcement of that. And … we're seeing that bans don't work for their intended purposes of potentially reducing smoking," said Diane Goldstein, executive director of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership. Ken Blevins / USA TODAY Network / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
