Capps Applauds New FDA Tobacco Rule

Press Release

Today, Rep. Lois Capps (CA-24) offered the following statement upon the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) release of a final rule to regulate the full scope of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, cigars, hookah tobacco, and pipe tobacco. This decision adds these products to existing rules affecting traditional cigarettes and will help keep these products out of the hands of children.

"Today, the FDA has taken an important--and necessary--step forward to protect public health and reduce death, disease, and substantial health care costs associated with tobacco use," Capps said. "The truth is that there are health risks involved in all forms of tobacco products and they need to be treated as such.

"In particular, this rule will do a great deal to protect children. While youth smoking has declined, recent studies have found that tobacco use has remained the same. Much of that is due to the rise in popularity of e-cigarettes, whose use is up 900% amongst high school students. This is a real epidemic and banning the sales of these products to minors, much like cigarettes, is a critical step to protecting their health now and into the future."

Before today, there was no federal law prohibiting retailers from selling e-cigarettes, hookah tobacco or cigars to people under the age of 18. This FDA rule changes that with provisions aimed at restricting youth access, which go into effect in 90 days, including:

Not allowing products to be sold to persons under the age of 18 years (both in person and online);
Requiring age verification by photo ID;

Not allowing the selling of covered tobacco products in vending machines (unless in an adult-only facility); and
Not allowing the distribution of free samples.

Congresswoman Capps has worked for years with fellow Democrats, including former Rep. Henry Waxman, to regulate tobacco products and keep them out of the hands of children. As Vice-Chair of the Health Subcommittee, she was a proud co-sponsor the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which became law in 2009 and gave FDA the authority for the first time to regulate all tobacco products. Just last week, a teenage constituent in Congresswoman Capps' district was hospitalized after an e-cigarette device exploded causing burns on his face, highlighting the need for increased oversight of these products.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 480,000 people die each year of tobacco-related causes. Smoking-related illness in the United States also costs more than $300 billion each year, including: nearly $170 billion for direct medical care for adults. It also accounts for more than $156 billion in lost productivity, including $5.6 billion in lost productivity due to secondhand smoke exposure.

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