President Trump has backed off the vaping flavor ban he promised to counter the rise in teen vaping.
Trump reportedly canceled administration plans to roll out the ban during a briefing about the potential consequences on a Nov. 4 flight to Kentucky, according to multiple reports. He told advisers that he wouldn’t sign off on the ban because he was worried that it could lead to job losses and political fallout, the Washington Post reported.
The administration had faced months of pressure from public health groups to crack down on e-cigarette companies, and the proposed flavor ban garnered strong support as the number of lung injuries linked to vaping recently surpassed 2,000 and caused 40 deaths. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, recently narrowed in on vitamin E acetate, an ingredient in THC vaping liquids, as the likely cause of injuries and deaths. Despite evidence that THC, the high-inducing chemical in marijuana is to blame, officials have scrutinized the e-cigarette industry for marketing to teens.
Trump said Nov. 11 that he would be meeting with representatives of the vaping industry, medical professionals, and state representatives “to come up with an acceptable solution to the Vaping and E-cigarette dilemma.”
