The expected menthol cigarette ban is likely to be delayed till next year, possibly even after the presidential election. Photo credit Wil540, CC 4.0.
The ban on menthol cigarettes in the US may not be announced till next year, possibly even after the presidential election in November, according to NBC, citing officials from two national public health groups trying to take menthol cigarettes off the market.
Both requested anonymity to discuss the decision prior to any announcement from the Biden administration.
“Everything gets harder to do in an election year because people are distracted and bandwidth is stretched,” an official said.
National Review reported that new polling by Democratic pollster Cornell Belcher commissioned by Altria found that a majority (54%) of core Biden voters oppose the ban on menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars.
A majority of core Biden voters in each battleground state, including 53% of core voters in Arizona, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania; 57% in Georgia; and 51% in Michigan are against the menthol ban.
“Candidates risk alienating base supporters in battleground states by taking up a cause that most voters oppose and don’t believe to be important,” Belcher’s poll memo said. “Biden’s core voters are simply not comfortable with the idea of prohibition as a government approach to tobacco.” The poll found that 19% said they prefer outright prohibition, while 74% said they prefer a harm reduction approach.
Voters do not see a ban on menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars as the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) top priority, with 76% citing reducing opioid abuse as the top priority, 70% said authorizing prescription medication, and 64% said educating the public on food safety. At the bottom of the list was banning adult use of tobacco products, with only 18% of respondents seeing it as extremely important.
According to STAT, 24 Biden officials met with representatives of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) on November 20 to discuss FDA's proposal for the menthol ban. Also at the meeting was a lobbyist from Altria, along with representatives from Reynolds American and Philip Morris International. The meeting is notable due to the fact that high-ranking Biden officials, such as White House domestic policy advisor Neera Tanden, health and human services (HHS) secretary Xavier Becerra, and FDA commissioner Robert Califf, attended this meeting despite not having participated earlier.