For Immediate Release
Contact: Ally Abrams 202-467-5310

September 11, 2019
 

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) Director of Health and Science Policy Elizabeth Wright released the following statement regarding the Trump administration’s ill-advised plan to consider banning flavored e-cigarettes:

This decision comes before the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have finished investigating incidents of death and adverse reactions to using e-cigarettes. 

“The Trump administration’s plan will harm people who use flavored e-cigarettes to wean themselves off of smoking combustible cigarettes, which have well documented adverse health impacts.  In England, a study showed that e-cigarettes were twice as effective as nicotine patches or gum to help cigarette smokers quit their deadly habit.  They concluded that e-cigarettes are not a gateway to cigarettes and are 95 percent less harmful.  The President’s announcement is a misguided attempt to curb teen vaping and could potentially cause more dangerous counterfeit vaping products to be sold on the streets.  The administration needs to review all of the facts before rushing to put a ban on flavors for e-cigarettes that has helped millions of Americans quit smoking.  The best approach to stop teen smoking and vaping is for parents and teachers to educate youth that getting hooked on nicotine is not a healthy or smart thing to do rather than instituting an outright ban on flavored e-cigarettes.  CAGW hopes that the Trump administration will reverse course on their decision.”

Citizens Against Government Waste is the nation’s largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.