[Dion]

U.S. Attorneys General press FDA for tougher e-cigarette rules

(Reuters) - Attorneys general from 29 U.S. states urged the Food and Drug Administration on Friday to strengthen its proposed regulation on electronic cigarettes to better protect young people from nicotine addiction.

In a letter, attorneys general from states including New York, Illinois, Indiana and Massachusetts asked the FDA to prohibit flavors other than tobacco and menthol, and to restrict advertising and marketing for e-cigarettes as strictly as it does for cigarettes, according to a press release from New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

In April, the FDA proposed rules that would ban the sale of e-cigarettes to anyone under 18, but would not restrict flavored products, online sales or advertising, which public health advocates say attract children. It marked the agency's first step toward regulating the burgeoning $2 billion industry.

The push by the attorneys general comes as the e-cigarette industry, backed by tobacco companies, expands its marketing across the country. More than 14 million U.S. adults and almost 2 million teenagers and children aged 10-12, dubbed "tweenagers," have used e-cigarettes.

In an email, an FDA spokeswoman declined to comment on the request from the attorneys general, but said bringing e-cigarettes under the agency's authority was "an important consumer protection."

Electronic cigarette makers will have to register with the FDA, adhere to minimum age and identification restrictions to prevent sales to underage youth and include health warning labels, among other obligations, the email said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/...0G81ZZ20140808