Heartland Institute Vaping Experts React to House Vote Loosening Proposed E-Cigarette Regulations

Heartland Institute Vaping Experts React to House Vote Loosening Proposed E-Cigarette Regulations

Chicago, Illinois (PRWEB) April 20, 2016

On Tuesday, the House Appropriations Committee passed an amendment to its fiscal year 2017 agricultural appropriations bill that changes the predicate date for vapor products to the effective date of the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) final rule. The amendment passed by a 31–19 bipartisan vote. FDA, which is poised to soon propose regulation of electronic cigarettes, had previously planned to force every e-cigarette product that came on the market after February 15, 2007 – the predicate date – to go through the onerous and expensive Pre-Market Tobacco Application process.

The following statements from vaping and electronic cigarette experts at The Heartland Institute – a free-market think tank – may be used for attribution. For more comments, refer to the contact information below. To book a Heartland guest on your program, please contact New Media Specialist Donald Kendal at dkendal(at)heartland(dot)org and 312/377-4000 or (cell) 847/877-9100.

"Vapor products are having a positive impact on public health, but they could have an even greater one if government gets out of the way. Having a reasonable grandfather date for products based on the date the final FDA regulations are filed – rather than a date set before most vapor products were even on the market – is one of the most important policy decisions Congress can make regarding the regulation of vapor products. Without changing the grandfather date, very few, if any, vapor products would be able to stay on the market. It would be cost-prohibitive for the overwhelming majority of these products to go through FDA's approval process."

John Nothdurft
Director of Government Relations
The Heartland Institute
jnothdurft(at)heartland(dot)org
312/377-4000

"Finally, the government is acknowledging how the vaping market is helping thousands of people quit smoking cigarettes. The move to healthier options, without overzealous government intervention, will surely have a positive effect on Americans' health in the future."

Lindsey Stroud
Government Relations Coordinator
The Heartland Institute
lstroud(at)heartland(dot)org
312/377-4000

"This is an important, albeit small, step in the right direction. What is most impressive and promising going forward is that this vote for harm reduction garnered bipartisan sponsorship and support.

"The regulation would have the effect, intended or not, of taking e-cigarettes away from former smokers who quit smoking by using these less-harmful alternatives. This is exactly the opposite of what government should be doing, which is to create a regulatory environment that encourages smokers to switch to e-cigarettes, the dramatically less harmful way to get nicotine."

Jeff Stier
Senior Fellow, National Center for Public Policy Research
Policy Advisor, The Heartland Institute
jeffstier(at)gmail(dot)com
312/377-4000

"This amendment represents a much-needed reprieve for America's public health, which has been so cynically corrupted over the past six years by those ostensibly providing leadership.

"But with all due respect to Rep. Tom Cole and so many other true health advocates, even if enacted, it is merely a stopgap, a finger in the dike that is still slated to be inundated by FDA's proposed regulations."

Gilbert L. Ross, M.D.
Policy Advisor
The Heartland Institute
media(at)heartland(dot)org
312/377-4000

"Without changing the predicate date, most of these innovative products will never be able to make their way to the marketplace, leaving those who are looking for a less-harmful alternative to smoking with limited options. Vaping is not the same as smoking tobacco products, and many smokers use e-cigarettes to stop smoking, thereby reducing the likelihood of suffering in the future from serious tobacco-related illnesses, such as lung cancer. E-cigarettes and other vaping devices have far fewer negative consequences for vapers and bystanders, and they should not be treated the same as tobacco products."

Matthew Glans
Senior Policy Analyst
The Heartland Institute
mglans(at)heartland(dot)org
312/377-4000

The Heartland Institute is a 32-year-old national nonprofit organization headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our Web site or call 312/377-4000.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2016/04/prweb13358865.htm