6/23/2023 4th of July Sale starting July 3-July 6th 2019 Buy 10 Get 10 Seeds Free!

Welcome to Marijuana-Hemp-Cannabis Blog by Kenny Rogers

Hope everybody has a great 4th of July. Spend alot of time with family, friends and kids. Please call your single friends and invite them out to celebrate with you. Be safe!

The following strains will be available for the 10+10 free seed sale but act fast this sale won't last long! go



Girl Scout Cookie is a hybrid of Durban Poison and OG Kush mixed with ruderalis traits to make it autoflowering. Not to be confused with the regular version of Girl Scout Cookies, this extreme version is an end-of-day strain. Its lovely aroma of sweet earthiness provides a delightful, euphoric high that leaves you completely relaxed.

Buy Girl Scout Cookie

Super Lemon Haze Feminized has held its own in the marijuana market for years. As a Cannabis Cup winner, it is most certainly a champion and has gained popularity around the world due to this fame. You’ll enjoy the sharp whiff of lemon that delivers a citrusy, lemony flavor. Its high comes slowly and remains steady, offering a euphoric high that literally brings you joy.

Feminized Seeds

 

 Purple Haze Feminized is great to grow both indoors or out as the seeds carry a high resistance to disease. They also produce high yields, about 19 ounces of smokable bud per square meter when grown inside. When grown outside you can expect, with lots of sun, to get about 14 ounces of bud per plant. That means you not only get a great high, you get an even better grow and crop!

Purple Haze

From one customer to 500 regular buyers. Love My Cbd Products and Marijuana

Press Release
Love My CBD Products and Marijuana; 
From one customer to 500 regular buyers 
https://lovemycbdproductsandmarijuana.com

Before you click on my link above, I want you to listen to some awesome music.....
12-year old Beau Dermott blows Amanda----"American Got Talent" away with her impressive cover of "Defying Gravity" from the musical Wicked with the Judge reaching for that all-important Golden Buzzer!

12-year old Beau Dermott

 A company dealing with CBD oils and marijuana products celebrates its achievements over the years. Love My CBD Products and Marijuana, a company which was started in 2016 with just one regular customer, has now grown and currently has more than 500 customers who buy their products every three months. 

The company, which has been providing its customers with high quality products such as CBD Oils, KStick Vap-pens, E-Liquids, among other CBD and marijuana products, is excited with by the trajectory of growth. While reacting to this development, Kenny Rogers, President of the company, revealed that they have always put the customer first, providing them with reliable and high quality products. “ This is why we have grown so fast in just three years, we aspire to grow further through continued support of our customers and providing them with products that meet their expectations,” said Kenny Rogers. 

According to Kenny Rogers, among the latest products that have proven popular with the customers is the CBD oil. This is a product that is known for many benefits including relieving arthritis, joint and muscle pain, among others. Others include vaporizers and E- Liquids, different KStick Vap-pens, with more than 3,000 combinations of E-liquid blending. 

While articulating other benefits of the CBD products, 

Kenny Rogers added that CBD products are a natural alternative to health and healing through nutritional supplements, which can be used with any daily routine to offer a wide range of potential benefits. 

Products sold by Love My CBD Products and Marijuana are from certified organic cultivation, and sourced from the best geographical farming region. The products are not only organic but also vegan-friendly and gluten-free

Free Marijuana Bible Customers are also being offered an opportunity to download a free Marijuana Bible. This is a guide that contains information on marijuana farming. It provides readers with tips on how they can increase their marijuana product, giving them a real growing experience.

One customer who has read the guide since 2016 had this to say; "I am a customer of lovemycbdproductsandmarijuana.com and have the free Grow Bible since 2016 and I am very impressed with the information and easy to follow instructions.” Love My CBD Products and Marijuana promises to continue providing its customers with high quality products as well as guides that will enhance their marijuana farming and use.

For 35 Years as Payroll Manager, Payroll Tax Accountant, Payroll Consultant, Kenny Rogers cared for over 500,000 employees worldwide. They got paid correctly and on time every week. If customers have any problems, they can contact Kenny Rogers. Their problems will be resolved by him and top management! 

For more information visit:
https://lovemycbdproductsandmarijuana.com

6/23/2023 Medical Uses Of Skywalker OG-Star War Buzz

Welcome to Marijuana Hemp Cannabis Blog

by Kenny Rogers, NY/NM

Beautiful Weather 75 and sunny.

"There are always flowers for those who want to see them."

 Henri Maltisse

Love My Vaporizers, Pipes, E-liquids Products, 

and Marijuana Seeds

Month "May" was named for the Roman goddess Maia, who oversaw the growth of plants. Also from the Latin word maiores, "elders", who were celebrated during this month.

Star Wars made approx $7 Billion Dollars 2019

International Box Office: Endgame Second Weekend Sends it Passed $2 billion Worldwide

May 5th, 2019

Avengers: Endgame added another $282.2 million in 55 markets for totals of $1.569 billion internationallyand $2.189 billion worldwide. The weekend total is much smaller than it was last weekend, but that’s because we are comparing five-day openings in many markets to three-day weekend this time around. If you compare three-day weekends, then Endgame only dropped 55%, which is better than the similarly calculated 61% decline Infinity War managed last year. The film became just the third film to reach $1.5 billion internationallyand overtook Titanic for second place on the all-time chart. Avatar’s position in first place does not seem safe at this moment. It became just the fourth film to reach $2 billion worldwide and will finish the weekend in third place, just ahead of The Force Awakens and just behind of Titanic.

As for new markets, the film had only one new release, Russia, where it opened on Monday. The film took in $32.6 million during its seven-day debut. This is a record opening for the market and even though it was a seven-day opening, this was still an impressive result.

Looking at the cumulative totals, China led the way with $575.8 million and it is already the biggest western release in that market and the third biggest overall. Only Wolf Warrior 2 and The Wandering Earth have done better in China. The film has already crossed $50 million in the U.K. ($89.9 million); South Korea ($82.1 million); Mexico ($61.6 million); Brazil ($56.3 million); and India ($51.8 million). Avengers: Endgame is already the biggest hit in Mexico and the biggest western hit in India. It won’t be long before more records fall in other major markets.

Puzzle of the Month

Often we are covered with wisdom and wit, and oft with a cloth where the dinner guests sit; in beauty around you and over your head, we are countless, though numbered when bound to be read.

(Answer at bottom)

May 1 to May 6 only!

Skywalker OG

About Skywalker OG

Much like the name suggests, Skywalker OG is a strain of cannabis that will take you to another galaxy. This indica-dominant hybrid delivers a super mellow high like some of the more popular strains on the market. It will leave you floating on clouds, completely relaxed and happy. The euphoria is so calming that it’s just right for both veterans and newbie smokers.

Named after the famed Star Wars character, Luke Skywalker, this cannabis strain is named appropriately. This potent plant is a result of merging two legendary strains, Skywalker and OG Kush. You’ll experience a great euphoria along with good vibrations.

Origin Of Skywalker OG

Skywalker OG, which is sometimes referred to as “galaxy” due to the effect it has after use, is a potent indica dominant hybrid strain that will take its user to a galaxy many miles away. It is a cross of Skywalker and OG Kush. Its strain’s composition is 80% indica and 20% sativa, with 26% THC and low CBD.

There are rumors that this marijuana strain may have derived from various others mixed with OG Kush. However, no matter where it actually derived from, experts and users all agree that it is the most potent OG strain of medical cannabis on the market today. This is because its THC levels can be as high as 20%. What a powerful punch to pack!

The strain is extremely popular on the West Coast in cities such as Los Angeles, Seattle, San Diego, San Francisco and Portland. You’ll also easily find this strain in Detroit,  Denver, Phoenix and Las Vegas. That’s just in the United States. The galaxy weed, Skywalker OG, is easily accessible across the globe.

Taste And Aroma Of Skywalker OG

Skywalker OG gives off the aroma of fresh earth right after a heavy rain. Its herbal aroma is described by users as dank, yet inviting and soothing. You’ll also smell and hint of spicy sweetness, and pungent fruitiness. This is not a hit it and quit it weed. The aroma of this strain overpowers the room long after you’re done smoking.

In terms of flavor, this strain has a taste of strong earthiness. You’ll be reminded of the pungent aroma of fresh pine cones. On exhale, prepare yourself for the sweet-spicy blend of earthy flavors and fruity undertones. You may also detect a hint of delicious citrus.

Effects Of Skywalker OG Strain

Skywalker OG strain makes you feel relaxed and happy with a warm fuzziness enveloping your body. It instantly instills a lovely euphoric effect. It’s a hybrid, so you’ll feel it throughout your body, but its high indica content has the tendency to make you feel sleepy. So beware the couch lock as you space travel.

Skywalker OG is not a mild strain. It can leave you in a trance and make you observe your surroundings at will. You will likely move into a very powerful mind-altering visual high mood that will simply blow you away.

Adverse Reactions

For amateurs, this strain’s smoke can leave you coughing. Skywalker OG is also associated with a dry throat after use. The dehydration effect is a major setback of this strain. These symptoms are clearly evident in a cottonmouth and dry eyes which may become itchy at times. Drinking lots of liquids during and after smoking will help with these issues. Veteran users of the Skywalker OG may also experience mild anxiety possibly accompanied with mild feelings of dizziness.

Medical Uses Of Skywalker OG

The medical cannabis community widely uses Skywalker OG for many good reasons. One reason is that it helps users deal with symptoms of stress. It is also a pain-reliever with the ability to soothe an array of aches and pains.

Here are some of the medicinal benefits of Skywalker OG:

• Helps with muscle spasms
• Relaxing way to cope with stress, depression, and anxiety
• Effectively treats restlessness and insomnia
• Causes munchies, making it practical for treating loss of appetite and chronic nausea
• It’s also a powerful pain reliever that is known to help with:
• PMS
• Joint pains
• PMS
• Cramps

Skywalker OG is a natural painkiller. It is useful in relieving pain - especially back and joint pain as well as muscle spasms. Women undergoing abdominal pains (cramps) may use this strain for immediate relief.

Cancer patients are likely to lose their appetite after treatment due to the side effect from chemicals used during chemotherapy. These same chemicals can cause severe nausea. This strain restores the appetite instantly and helps ease nausea.

If you are depressed, then Skywalker OG will make you smile and fill you with happiness. Your body will feel warm and fuzzy, and you’ll probably be grinning. Skywalker OG is a powerful tranquilizer that cures insomnia for good.

Growing Skywalker OG

Skywalker OG is not for beginners, but it’s not terribly difficult to grow. It grows rather bushy, so you’ll need to top it in order to achieve vibrant growth. You’ll also need to plan for adequate space, as it will appreciate complete exposure to sunlight. It is a good idea to use compost tea as a foliar sprayer to help prevent powdery mildew from developing.

Skywalker OG can be grown indoors or outdoors. However, it does best when grown outdoors in a sunny climate because it prefers a lot of sunlight, warmth, and space. It does poorest under high humidity. Under such warm conditions, this strain will have a generous yield of 28 ounces of usable cannabis per plant when cultivated outdoors. Expect to harvest sometime in October.

When grown indoors it requires lots of effort and maintenance. It flourishes best between 68-80 degrees Fahrenheit, taking about 9-10 weeks to flower. Yields for indoor cultivators are about 16 ounces of usable bud per square meter.

Answer to: Puzzle of Month

Leaves

Thank you for allowing me to share this blog with you.

Kenny Rogers

Hope the Forth be with you. May your horse at the Kentucky Derby come in 1st. 

My picks: 1. War of Will (18/1), 2nd-5th places.......Roadster (9/1), Improbable (6/1), Game Winner (6/1) and Country House (70/1). 

6/23/2023 Radiation/Chemotherapy and Medical Uses For Blueberry Strain

Welcome to Marijuana-Hemp-Cannabis Blog 

by Kenny Rogers

Blog was originally posted by me April 2019

 

Love My Vaporizers, Pipes, E-liquids, Products and Marijuana

Blueberry (fem)

We will discuss benefits of Blueberry (fem) near the end of this blog.

Radiation therapy can take place on its own, but it's frequently combined with chemotherapy as a comprehensive cancer treatment program. Radiation therapy differs from chemotherapy — it is used to treat just the tumor, so it affects only the part of the body that has cancer.

Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy? What Are the Differences?

What Is Chemotherapy?

Chemotherapy, or chemo, is a process in which drugs are used to treat cancer.

It is a “systemic” treatment — working through the whole body to prevent the spread of the disease. The drug(s) used will vary depending on the type and stage of cancer as well as the patient’s age and health. The goal of chemotherapy is to stop the spread of cancer to other parts of the body.Chemotherapy is administered by a medical oncology (cancer) health professional, typically a nurse or doctor. Chemo can be delivered as an outpatient procedure, in a hospital, a doctor’s office, or even at home in any of the following ways:

• Injection into muscle, vein, or artery
• Orally
• Injection into the body (such as the abdomen)
• Direct skin application

Chemotherapy side effects

Chemo side effects vary depending on the type and amount of chemotherapy drug used and how the body reacts to it. Because chemotherapy drugs travel through the body, they can also impact healthy cells, leading to a variety of side effects.

Chemo is designed to kill fast-growing cancer cells, but this can sometimes lead to side effects involving the body’s other, healthy fast-growing cells.

• Blood forming cells in the bone marrow (anemia, increased risk of infection, bruising)
• Hair follicles (temporary hair loss)
• Cells in the mouth, digestive and reproductive tract (nausea, loss appetite, constipation, diarrhea)

Some chemo drugs can damage cells in the heart, kidneys, bladder, lungs, and nervous system. Your doctor monitors you closely and may prescribe medicines to protect your body’s normal cells. There are also medicines to help relieve side effects.

Learn more about chemotherapy treatment at UPMC Hillman CancerCenter.

What Is Radiation Therapy?

Radiation therapy is the use of high-energy particles or waves to destroy or damage cancer cells.

Radiation is delivered using special equipment that sends high doses of radiation to the cancer cells or tumor. Radiation can also affect healthy cells, however, normal cells can repair themselves, while cancer cells cannot.

Sometimes radiation is used to treat cancer, or it may be used to help you feel better, such as to minimize bone pain, for example. Radiation therapy can take place on its own, but it’s frequently combined with chemotherapy as a comprehensive cancer treatment program.

Radiation therapy differs from chemotherapy — it is used to treat just the tumor, so it affects only the part of the body that has cancer.

Types of radiation therapy

Radiation can be administered in two ways: internally or externally:

External: External beam radiation is delivered from a machine. It is very similar to receiving a chest X-ray. Most people are treated five days a week for one to 10 weeks, depending on the type and location of cancer, their overall health, and other factors. The treatment only takes a few minutes, and is not generally given over the weekend.

You will be asked to lie flat on a treatment table, under the radiation machine. Other parts of your body may be protected with special shields or blocks to prevent the radiation from going to those areas.

External treatments include:

• 3D conformal radiation therapy after the tumor is mapped through imaging, beams of radiation treat the cancerous tumor.
• Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) gives the radiation oncologists the ability to more precisely “custom sculpt” the shape of the tumor. This helps deliver the right amount of radiation more accurately, as well as helps to preserve healthy tissue surrounding the tumor.

Internal: Radiation that is placed inside of the body is called internal radiation therapy or brachytherapy. A radioactive source, called an implant, is placed directly to the tumor or near the tumor. This delivers large doses of radiation to directly to the source of your cancer. These implants may look like a wire, pellet, or seeds.

If the implants are left in your body, you may be given special instructions such as to limit your time with and/or avoid children or pregnant women. After a few weeks to a few months, the implants stop giving off radiation, and you can return to normal activities. The implant, however, will remain in your body forever.

Some implants may be removed after a period of hours or days. Most often, they are administered in a hospital private room, and visitors will only be allowed to stay with you for short periods of time.

The most common types of cancers treated with internal radiation therapy are:

• Breast
• Cervical, ovarian, pelvic
• Head and neck
• Lung
• Perianal
• Prostate

Learn more about radiation oncology treatment at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center.

What Cancer Treatment Is Best for Me?

Your treatment plan may be chemotherapy, radiation therapy, surgery, or any combination of these.

It is important that you understand your options, so patients are encouraged to ask questions. If you choose to research the types of cancer treatments available, make sure you’re using a reliable source. Your oncologist and health care team will work closely with you to determine your best treatment plan.

Please allow me the opportunity to share my personal experience with my father's Radiation and Chemo Treatments........

Aug 1998 my father was being treated at the VA center at Ft Hamilton, NY. The pain and suffering that he went thru everyday....He was coming home in excruciating pain. He was curled up and crying like a baby. He was drinking, drinking, drinking to ease the pain.  Everyday after treatments, my father was drinking more and more. Beating up and abusing my mother. One day I took the baseball bat and cracked him over his back. The abuse towards my mom stopped! He dranked, dranked, and dranked to eased his pain. He was classified as Stage 4 Cancer on his Liver (no cure)........The VA Center told me to take him home and allow him to enjoy the holidays (which will be his last). Jan 1999 my father died. Radiation and Chemo Treatments did not save his life.  

Lets talk about Blueberry

Today, Blueberry is one of the most purchased strains of cannabis on the medical marijuana market. It’s the recipient of the best indica of the year award from the High Times Cannabis Cup. The blueberry flavor makes it pleasing to the tongue, and the high lasts for quite a while. This strain grows best outdoors as it needs a lot of open space to grow wide and bushy.

Medical Uses For Blueberry Strain

Blueberry is infamous for its relaxing abilities. That’s why it’s so highly recommended by both physicians and medical marijuana dispensaries. This indica powerhouse is an effective stress management tool because it restores calmness and promotes relaxation.

Blueberry is a very beneficial strain for medical cannabis patients with chronic ailments. CBD at this level helps to treat some of the most aggressive pain symptoms and easily treats insomnia and depression.

Pain Management

There are other medicinal uses for Blueberry as a pain management tool. It has also been known to relieve uncomfortable symptoms related to the following:

• Headaches
• Migraines
• Cramps
• Menstrual cramps
• Muscle spasms

Mind Management

Blueberry not only relaxes the mind, but it also delivers overall body relaxation as well. So, it’s able to provide medicinal advantages to those suffering from other debilitating symptoms that affect patients on a non-physical level. Some include:

• Cancer Patients – Helps with loss of appetite and extreme nausea caused by chemotherapy
• Loss of Appetite – Increases appetites, beneficial for those suffering from anorexia, HIV, etc...
• Insomnia – Combats restlessness, promotes relaxation, causes sleepiness
• Anti-Psychotic Properties – CBD reduces anxiety which helps with panic attacks and nervousness
• Depression – Delivers THC levels which release happy feelings and helps to relieve stress

Blueberry’s CBD Benefits

Blueberry's CBD levels could help with a number of existing conditions, as well as prevention, such as:

• Alcoholism
• Some forms of cancer
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Huntington’s disease
• Preventing or reduce diabetes
• Nerve/brain damage caused by stroke
• Mad Cow disease and other prion infections

 Strain - Blueberry Fem

Please share your experience with your family bout with 

Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy!!!!

Tell me and my friends on this site........We feel your pain and sorry for your lost! Your story will be published without any changes.......

Thank you very much for sharing with us.

Cordially.

Kenny Rogers

Publisher 

Marijuana-Hemp-Cannabis Blog

6/23/2023 Historical Timeline of Electronic Cigarettes 1930-2016

Welcome to Marijuan-Hemp-Cannabis Blog

by Kenny Rogers
Love My Vaporizers, Pipes, E-Liquids Products

 and Marijuana Seeds

A Historical Timeline of Electronic Cigarettes

1930s – 1970s 2003 – 2008 2009
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

1930s – 1970s

1930: The first documented reference to an electronic cigarette is a patent granted to Joseph Robinson in 1930 (filed in 1927). It was never commercialized and it is not entirely clear that even a prototype of this primitive device was manufactured.

1960s: Herbert A. Gilbert is generally credited with the creation of the first device that closely resembled the modern e-cigarette. He reports receiving a patent in 1965 (filed in 1963) and created prototypes (possibly never including nicotine), but failed to commercialize it. He attributes this failure the companies who might have commercialized it preferring to wait for the patent to expire rather than license it, though it is not clear whether it had commercial potential at the time.

1979-80s: Starting in 1979, Phil Ray, one of the pioneers of computers, worked with his personal physician Norman Jacobson to create the first commercialized variation on the e-cigarette (which was not actually electronic; it relied on evaporation of the nicotine). They performed the first known formal research in the field on nicotine delivery. The commercialization of the product reached major retailers. But the device was never a promising technology for nicotine delivery; Jacobson attributes its failure to it being inherently faulty. While the device proved to be a dead-end, the inventors did contribute the verb “vape” to the language.

1990s: Numerous patents for nicotine inhaler devices were filed throughout the 20th century and early 2000s by both tobacco companies and individual inventors, with a flurry of activity in the 1990s. Many relied on evaporation or physical propulsion, but a few were fairly similar to modern e-cigarettes. One chemical-reaction based system that was invented in the 1990s is still in the pipeline. Reynolds brought to market the Eclipse “heat-not-burn” device, whose functioning falls somewhere in between that of a pure nicotine inhaler and a combusted cigarette. (See also Philip Morris’s Accord.) Products closely resembling modern e-cigarettes moved toward commercialization in the 1990s (example). A major U.S. tobacco company requested permission from FDA (which did not then regulate tobacco products, but did regulate drug delivery devices) to bring a version of an e-cigarette to market c.1998. FDA denied the request on the basis of it being an unapproved drug delivery device. This may explain the disappearance of the attempts to bring an e-cigarette to market, though the history of what happened is rather murky, and the U.S. ruling does not fully explain the disappearance of the technology elsewhere.

2003 – 2008

2003: What would become the first commercially successful electronic cigarette is created in Beijing, China by Hon Lik, a 52 year old pharmacist, inventor and smoker. He reportedly created the device after his father, also a heavy smoker, dies of lung cancer. (It is not clear the extent to which his was a de novo rederivation of the technology and to what extent he was drawing upon prior art; he failed to cite much prior art in his patent applications.) The company Lik worked for, Golden Dragon Holdings, developed the device and changed its name to Ruyan, which means “like smoke.”

April 2006: Electronic cigarettes introduced to Europe.

2006-2007: Electronic cigarettes introduced to the U.S. (The first import ruling locatable in the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website database is dated August 22, 2006. NY M85579)

March 2008: Turkey’s Health Ministry suspends the sale of e-cigarettes. Health Ministry Drugs and Pharmacy Director, Mahmut Tokaç, claims electronic cigarettes are just as harmful as regular cigarettes. The vice president of the Foundation Combating Smoking in Turkey, Kiyas Güngör, claims that “nicotine is the most dangerous element among 4,800 poisonous chemicals in cigarettes.” (See discussion here re 2008 decision. Currently, e-cigarettes cannot be sold in stores in Turkey although they can be purchased online. Actual legal status at present is unclear.)

September 2008: The World Health Organization (WHO) proclaims that it does not consider the electronic cigarette to be a legitimate smoking cessation aid and demands that marketers immediately remove from their materials any suggestions that the WHO considers electronic cigarettes safe and effective. (See WHO September 19, 2008 press release here.)

October 2008:  In a study funded by Ruyan, Health New Zealand conducts a detailed quantitative analysis and concludes that carcinogens and toxicants are present only below harmful levels. On the basis of the findings, the e-cigarette is rated several orders of magnitude (100 to 1000 times) less dangerous than smoking tobacco cigarettes. The nicotine dose is comparable to that of a medicinal nicotine inhaler. Overall, the product tested was deemed a “safe alternative to smoking.”

2009

January 2009:

• Australia bans the possession and sale of electronic cigarettes which contain nicotine, citing that “every form of nicotine except for replacement therapies and cigarettes are classified as a form of poison.” (See NDPSC record of reasons, 54th meeting, 14-15 October 2008 and download provided here.)
• Jordan’s Ministry of Health bans the import of the electronic cigarettes, citing World Health Organization’s health concerns. (See discussion here.) In a February 2012 review of the ban, Malek Habashneh, director of the ministry’s awareness and communication directorate, claims that “e-cigarettes contain toxic chemicals that cause more health problems than the nicotine in normal cigarettes.”

March 2009:

• FDA adds electronic cigarettes to Import Alert 66-41 and directs the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to reject the entry of electronic cigarettes into the United States on the basis of them being unapproved drug delivery devices. (See pp. 12-13 here.) (At this time FDA had gained authority over tobacco products, but this ruling came not from their nascent Center for Tobacco Products, but from their Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.)
• Canada bans the sale, advertising and import of electronic cigarettes. Health Canada advises Canadians not to purchase or use them, claiming they contain a “known irritant” (propylene glycol). (See Health Canada’s advisory here.)
• Hong Kong Department of Health bans electronic cigarettes. The maximum penalty for possessing or selling e-cigarettes is a HK$100,000 fine and two years’ imprisonment. Since smoke-free tobacco is prohibited in Hong Kong, the ban on e-cigarettes continues to leave high-risk cigarettes as the only legal tobacco product available. (Information on current legal status of e-cigarettes in Hong Kong can be found here.)
• FDA notifies electronic cigarette company “Smoking Everywhere” that its shipments have been refused entry into the U.S. The FDA maintains that electronic cigarettes “appears to be a combination drug-device product” that require pre-approval, registration and listing with the FDA. (See pp. 10-11 here.)

April 2009:

• Smoking Everywhere files a federal complaint on April 28, 2009 seeking an injunction against the FDA with respect to the FDA’s attempts to ban the import of electronic cigarettes. Smoking Everywhere contends that the FDA has no authority over electronic cigarettes, as they are a “tobacco product,” and the FDA’s attempt to regulate them infringes on Congress’s intent to withhold FDA jurisdiction over tobacco products. Smoking Everywhere contends that electronic cigarettes are not “drugs,” “drug delivery systems,” or “drug device combinations” under 21 U.S.C 321(g).
• In a study funded by Ruyan, Health New Zealand conducts a detailed quantitative analysis and concludes that carcinogens and toxicants are present only below harmful levels. Bench-top test results presented as a poster at SRNT poster at SRNT in Dublin April 30, 2009. (Click here to download the poster.)

May 2009:

• Action on Smoking and Health in the United States (ASH-US) files a petition to the FDA calling for FDA regulation of electronic cigarettes.
• NJOY (Sottera) joins Smoking Everywhere’s lawsuit against FDA.
• The Electronic Cigarette Association (ECA) is formed. The ECA (now defunct) is a trade association made up of electronic cigarette producers, distributors and retailers; whose aim is to speak on behalf of the electronic cigarette industry, especially in response to health concerns, and to help institute industry standards. The group is headquartered in Washington, D.C. Its president and spokesman is former United States congressman Matt Salmon. (See video statement from ECA here and ECA’s brochure on e-cigarettes here. Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association (TVECA) claims to be ECA’s successor.
• FDA files memorandum in opposition to Smoking Everywhere’s complaint on May 11, 2009.
• FDA tests 2 brands of electronic cigarettes, NJOY & Smoking Everywhere. 18 cartridges are tested. Tests reveal trace amounts of tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) in the liquid in levels comparable to those found in FDA-approved nicotine cessation products. The liquid of one cartridge is found to contain a non-toxic amount (approximately 1%) diethylene glycol. TSNAs nor diethylene glycol is detected in the vapor. Some cartridges labeled as 0mg nicotine are shown to contain trace amounts of nicotine.

June 2009:

• President Obama signs into law the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, giving the FDA the power to regulate the tobacco industry. Although nicotine and cigarettes as a whole cannot be banned outright, flavoring such as fruit or mint can. Additionally, new tobacco products seeking to enter the market will be required to meet FDA pre-market standards, which could affect electronic cigarette regulation.
• Panama bans the importation, distribution and sale of electronic cigarettes.

July 2009:

• FDA files a supplemental brief in the Smoking Everywhere lawsuit referencing the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. The FDA contends that it still has authority over electronic cigarettes and FDA stands behind the decision to label it a drug-device combination. “FDA found, after examining the product, the claims made in the product labeling, and information SE submitted to FDA, that SE’s product met the definition of both a drug and device under the FDCA.”
• Two months after testing, the FDA issues a press release discouraging the use of electronic cigarettes and repeating previously stated concerns that electronic cigarettes may be marketed to young people, lack appropriate health warnings and that they contain carcinogens and toxic chemicals such as diethylene glycol, an ingredient used in antifreeze. The FDA did not reveal that the carcinogens found were similar to those found at the same levels in FDA-approved nicotine cessation products, nor that the amount of diethylene glycol found would not be toxic. The FDA also did not disclose that neither substance was found in the actual vapor to which the user is exposed.
• FDA’s May 2009 study is reviewed by scientific consulting firm Exponent, Inc., in a report commissioned by NJOY. Some of the criticisms of the FDA study, as set forth in Exponent’s report, are poor standards of documentation and analysis and failure to perform relevant comparisons to FDA-approved nicotine replacement therapy products, which Exponent claims contain TSNA levels comparable to those of electronic cigarettes. The study concludes that the FDA’s claims of potential adverse health effects were not supported by the study.
• Israeli Health Ministry considers banning e-cigarette sales and importation. (The ban discussed here in 2009 was never implemented, although in 2013, it was reported that Israel was considering either a ban or tobacco classification.)

August 2009:

• In a Washington Times op-ed, Dr. Elizabeth Whelan, president of the American Council on Science and Health, calls the FDA press statement about electronic cigarettes “distorted, incomplete and misleading” and meant to “scare Americans” to stay “away from these newfangled, untested cigarette substitutes — better to stick with the real ones.”
• The State of Oregon announces two settlements have been reached that prevent two national travel store chains, Pilot Travel Centers and TA Operating, from selling NJOY electronic cigarettes. In addition, the company must give the Attorney General advance notice that they intend to sell electronic cigarettes in Oregon, provide copies of all electronic cigarette advertising, and provide copies of the scientific studies they maintain substantiates their claims. NJOY voluntarily stops all sales in Oregon.
• Oregon Attorney General John Kroger announces a lawsuit against Smoking Everywhere, alleging that the Florida-based company made false health claims about its nicotine delivery device and targeted children with sweet flavors. Smoking Everywhere refuses to settle. (Smoking Everywhere eventually settled in August 2010.)
• Brazil bans the sale, importation and advertisement of electronic cigarettes. (See resolution here.)
• Suffolk County, NY passes first legislation banning indoor use of electronic cigarette in areas where smoking is also prohibited and bans sales to persons under age 19.
• Saudi Arabia bans sales of electronic cigarettes based on the statement made by the US Food and Drug Administration which had said [e-cigarettes] “contain harmful carcinogenic and toxic substances, notably diethylene glycol, a toxic chemical used in antifreeze.” (This ban continues today, as discussed here.)

September 2009:

• Amicus curiae brief filed by Alliance of Electronic Smokers (AES) in support of the plaintiff in the Smoking Everywhere v. FDA lawsuit.
• Amicus curiae brief filed by ASH (US) in support of defendant FDA.
• California passes a bill to ban the sales of electronic cigarettes in the state. Governor Schwarzenegger vetoes the bill stating, “If adults want to purchase and consume these products with an understanding of the associated health risks, they should be able to do so unless and until federal law changes the legal status of these tobacco products.”

September/October 2009: Amazon.com prohibits sale of electronic tobacco products on its website. (See discussion here.)

October 2009:

• Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association (CASAA) forms and board members elected. The organization is made up of both consumers and retailers, with the mission to ensure the availability of effective, affordable and reduced harm alternatives to smoking by increasing public awareness and education; to encourage the testing and development of products to achieve acceptable safety standards and reasonable regulation; and to promote the benefits of reduced harm alternatives. In order to ensure CASAA is first and foremost a consumer-based organization, the number of vendors elected to the board is limited so that consumer board members control a super majority.
•  UK ASH recognizes that products should be made available that deliver nicotine in a safe way, without the harmful components found in tobacco, but those attempting to quit should use conventional NRTs. (For a copy of UK ASH’s October 2009 briefing, click here. The current flyer, updated February 2016, can be found here.)
• PayPal freezes accounts of electronic cigarette vendors in the U.S. and prohibits them from using the service; however, vendors outside of the U.S. are allowed to continue using PayPal for electronic cigarette sales. (See discussion here and here.)

November 2009: New Jersey State legislators pass a bill including electronic cigarettes in the state’s public smoking ban.

December 2009: NJOY announces it is discontinuing, in the U.S., the availability of all flavors except its traditional tobacco flavor and menthol. The move aligns the flavors offered by NJOY with those allowed for combustible tobacco cigarettes under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. (NJOY’s corporate policy on flavors changed in 2014 with, among other things, its release of a premium line of e-liquid, as discussed here.)

2010

January 2010: On January 14, 2010, Judge Leon grants the injunction sought by Smoking Everywhere/Sottera prohibiting the FDA from seizing e-cigarettes as drug or drug/device combinations. Judge Leon issues a 32-page memorandum opinionexplaining the ruling.

March 2010:

• Appellate Court grants the FDA’s request for a stay of Judge Leon’s injunction pending appeal. (See discussion here.)
• The American Association of Public Health Physicians submits two Citizen Petitions to the FDA, one asking for reclassification of e-cigarettes to “tobacco product” and the other asking for a follow up statement to the July 2009 press conference. (See here and here for Citizen Petitions.)
• First Vapefest™ is held in Richmond, VA
• Ministry of Public Health bans the import and sale of electronic cigarettes in Thailand. It warns “the cigarettes contained more nicotine than normal ones.” (See discussion here on the issue and also see 2014 ban on import by Ministry of Commerce.)

April 2010:  CASAA and others help persuade Illinois legislators not to pass SB 3174, a law which would ban the sale of e-cigarettes in the state.

May 2010:

• FDA files appellant brief in Smoking Everywhere v. FDA case (U.S. Court of Appeals for District of Columbia).
• Coalition files amicus brief in the Smoking Everywhere v. FDA case supporting FDA’s position. Coalition members include American Academy of Pediatrics, American Cancer Society, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Legacy Foundation, American Lung Association, American Medical Association, and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

June 2010:

• American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates (HOD) passes a policyurging the FDA to regulate e-cigarettes as drug delivery devices.
• Sottera (NJOY) files Appellee brief in Smoking Everywhere v. FDA (U.S. Court of Appeals).

July 2010:

• Singapore bans e-cigarette importation, distribution and sales. Fine is of up to $5,000 upon conviction. (See here for current policy, which remains the same.)
• Marine Corps Base in Quantico bans e-cigarette use in its facilities. (See discussion here.)
• FDA files appellant reply brief in Smoking Everywhere v. FDA case (U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit).
• CASAA joins other e-cigarette and reduced-harm smokeless alternative proponents in filing an amicus brief in the Smoking Everywhere v. FDA case. Other amicus curiae named on the brief include Smokefree Pennsylvania, The American Council on Science and Health, National Vapers Club, Midwest Vapers Group, Michael Siegel, MD, MPH, and Joel Nitzkin, MD, MPH, DPA.
• Washington Legal Foundation (WLF) files amicus brief in the Smoking Everywhere v. FDA case.

August 2010:

• Oregon’s Attorney General John Kroger announces a settlement preventing the two national travel store chains from selling e-cigarettes. (The settlement with Smoking Everywhere can be viewed here.)
• Air Force surgeon general’s office categorizes e-cigarettes as “tobacco products” and prohibits their use in most Air Force facilities. (See discussion here.)

September 2010: Oral arguments before the U.S Court of Appeals in SE vs. FDA. (Transcript available here.)

October 2010: First VapeFest is held in UK.

December 2010: Smoking Everywhere v. FDA, U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington rules the FDA can only regulate e-cigarettes as a tobacco product, unless therapeutic claims are made. (The order is here and the 25-page decision is here.)

2011

February 2011: Study is published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine reporting that electronic cigarettes are a promising tool to help smokers quit, producing six-month abstinence rates that are better than those for traditional nicotine replacement products.

April 2011: FDA announces it will regulate e-cigarettes as it currently regulates traditional cigarettes and other tobacco products under the Food Drug and Cosmetics Act. However, any e-cigarette products advertising claims of helping the user to stop smoking or providing any other health benefit will be more strictly regulated as a drug or medical device.

May 2011:  Argentina passes resolution 3226/2011 banning the importation, distribution, commercialization and advertising of e-cigarettes and paraphernalia related to them. (See here for an unofficial translation followed by a copy of the original untranslated document.)

June 2011: First Vapestock held in Clearwater Beach, FL.

August 2011: Study published in the journal “Addiction” provides strong evidence that electronic cigarettes are being used with success by many smokers to quit smoking or cut down substantially on the number of cigarettes they consume, and that e-cigarettes are being used with success by many ex-smokers to remain off cigarettes.

September 2011:

• The Obama administration proposes banning the use of electronic cigarettes on airline flights, saying the “new rule would enhance passenger comfort and reduce any confusion.” The Department of Transportation says that although it considers electronic cigarettes to be covered under the existing law banning smoking on airplanes, it intends to adopt a rule specifically banning them in the summer of 2012. (See Joint Comment filed by CASAA and Competitive Enterprise Institute, filed November 2011.)
• Petition to the White House filed. While CASAA did not create the petition, CASAA urged its members to sign in order to reach the minimum threshold of 5,000 signatures, which it did.  Response received December 15, 2011 which was largely non-responsive.

October 2011:

• The British Cabinet Office’s Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) strongly endorses tobacco harm reduction in its first annual report. E-cigarettes are cited as potentially effective substitutes because of their behavioral attributes. (See news article here and actual report here.)
• First VaperCon is held in Richmond, VA
• The results of the first clinical trial of electronic cigarettes, reported in the journal BMC Public Health, suggests e-cigarettes may be more effective than traditional NRT products for smoking cessation and may be particularly effective in smokers who are not motivated to quit.

November 2011:

• CASAA and Competitive Enterprise Institute file a comment regarding the Department of Transportation proposal to amend its existing airline smoking rule to explicitly ban the use of electronic cigarettes on all aircraft in scheduled passenger interstate, intrastate and foreign air transportation. This regulation would impose fines of up to $3,300 for “smoking” an e-cigarette on an airplane. Those who use an e-cigarette would be treated exactly as if they were smoking a combusted tobacco product. See also comment from Smoke-free Pennsylvania.

December 2011:

• Holland’s Minister of Health, announces that the sale and import of electronic cigarettes is banned. E-cigarette sales will require a pharmaceutical license. (See discussion here.)
• The health minister of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia announces that the state government has determined that e-cigarettes and their cartridges fall under regulations concerning medicines and medical products. She states that the state government is planning to adopt regulations to ban their sale unless approved for sale in pharmacies.

2012

March 2012:

• First VapeBash is held in Chicago, IL.
• United Tobacco Vapor Group Inc., a branch of TVECA, wins a lawsuit challenging the Dutch Ministry of Health’s ban on e-cigarette sales.
• Consumer groups including CASAA, ECCA UK, Stelda NL (Netherlands), IGED (Germany) and ATACA (Australia) organize the first World Vaping Day.
• Smoke-Free Alternatives Trade Association (SFATA), a trade association representing a wide cross section of the vapor products industry, is formed.
• Nearly 200 of Germany’s estimated 1.2 million electronic cigarette users march peacefully in Düsseldorf in protest of “lies, missinformation [sic], raids at [e-cigarette] liquid stores by the police and a witch hunt against German vapers.”

April 2012:

• Venezuela’s government threatens to punish with fines up to $8,400 for those who distribute or promote electronic cigarettes banned in the country for not having permits or corresponding health records.
• Lorillard Inc. purchases blu eCigs for $135 million.

June 2012:  U.S. Inspector General’s office issued an “Early Alert” letter to Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding whether the CDC was illegally using federal funds tied to wellness programs to encourage local communities to adopt a bevy of tobacco restrictions. (Original letter extracted from a file found on the CauseOfAction.org site, the full file which can be downloaded here.)

September 2012:  R.J. Reynolds, through its pharmaceutical subsidiary Niconovum, launches Zonnic gum (a nicotine-replacement therapy) in test markets in Des Moines, IA.

October 2012:

• American E-Liquid Manufacturing Standards Association (AEMSA), a trade association specifically dedicated to creating/maintaining self-regulating standards for the manufacturing of its members’ e-liquids used in e-cigarettes, announces its launch.
• Smoke-free Alternatives Trade Association (SFATA) debuts at 2012 NACS Trade Show.

December 2012:  FDA holds a public hearing, and several members of industry as well as consumers and consumer representatives made presentations. CASAA issues a Call to Awareness as well as a Call to Action in connection with this hearing. FDA delayed publishing many of the comments for more than a year, which comments can be viewed here.

2013

January 2013:  A petition to the White House is created to “prevent the FDA from regulating or banning the sale and use of electronic cigarettes, accessories and associated liquids.”  While not created by CASAA, CASAA urged its members to signthe petition. The petition gained the required number of signatures (25,000), and a response from FDA was published in April 2014, which advocates characterized as largely non-responsive. (FDA’s response can be seen here.) This is the second community-supported White House petition effort, the first being in 2011 when the threshold for signatures was 5,000.

March 2013:  American E-Liquid Manufacturing Association (AEMSA) attends its first listening session with FDA.

April 2013:  Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Jack Reed (D-RI) send a letter to FDA urging FDA to issue deeming regulations to exert regulatory authority over cigars, pipe tobacco, electronic cigarettes, and dissolvable tobacco products.

May 2013:  CASAA launches its Testimonials Project to collect success stories from smokers who used smoke-free alternatives to quit or reduce their smoking. This public collection of success stories was created as a powerful response to those who want to restrict access to e-cigarettes and other smoke-free products. CASAA’s goal is to present a large collection of compelling individual reports that will make it impossible for anyone to claim that substitution of low-risk alternatives (e-cigarettes, snus, and other smoke-free tobacco/nicotine products) is not a proven method for quitting smoking.

June 2013:

• R.J. Reynolds announces new vapor product, VUSE, will be launched in July in Colorado as the first state in an eventual nationwide rollout.
• The U.K. Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency announces it will regulate e-cigarettes as medicines when new European tobacco laws come into force. (Note that this position has since changed.) See Clive Bates’ analysis here and here and also CASAA’s analysis.

July 2013:

• Vape A Vet, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, forms to provide active and former military service members with the equipment and knowledge necessary to switch to a healthier alternative at no cost to them.
• French consumer group AIDUCE issues “The Future of Vaping in the European Union.”
• American E-Liquid Manufacturing Association (AEMSA) attends its second listening session with FDA.

August 2013:

• Dragonite International Limited (formerly Ruyan Group (Holdings) Limited), and its wholly-own subsidiaries, sold its vapor business for $75 million to Fontem Ventures B.V., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Imperial Tobacco Group plc.
• CASAA gives presentation in FDA listening session.

September 2013:

• Four members of the U.S. House of Representatives (Henry A. Waxman, Diana DeGette, Frank Pallone, Jr., and John D. Dingell) send a letter to the FDA calling on the Obama administration to issue new rules for cigars and electronic cigarettes and also sent a letter to House Energy and Commerce Committee chairs urging them to call hearings.
• E-cigarette opponents sent a coalition letter to President Obama urging him to impose FDA deeming and other regulations on electronic cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products.
• National Association of Attorneys General sent a letter to FDA urging the issuance of proposed regulations.
• Germany, Higher Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia upheld three previous decisions that electronic cigarette products containing nicotine were not medicines, unless presented as such. See news report here.
• Government Accountability Office Report finds FDA needs to set time frames for its review process of Substantial Equivalence (SE) applications for tobacco products, noting FDA that on June 25, 2013—about 3 years after FDA’s receipt of the first SE submission—the Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) made a final decision on only 6 of the 3,788 SE submissions.

October 2013:

• CASAA calls out various legislators, state attorneys general, as well as the Centers for Disease Control (CDC),  for launching a bad-faith campaign against electronic cigarettes, a low-risk alternative to smoking.
• A press release is issued by a dozen legislators regarding letters they sent to various companies demanding information about marketing to children.
• European Union issues a press release rejecting a wholesale ban on the sale of e-cigarettes: “E-cigarettes should be regulated, but not be subject to the same rules as medicinal products unless they are presented as having curative or preventive properties. Those for which no such claims are made should contain no more than 30mg/ml of nicotine, should carry health warnings and should not be sold to anyone under 18 years old. Manufacturers and importers would also have to supply the competent authorities with a list of all the ingredients that they contain. Finally, e-cigarettes would be subject to the same advertising restrictions as tobacco products.”
• Proposed amendments to EU Tobacco Products Directive (e-cig Amendment 170) approved by 362-298 vote) (See Clive Bates’ analysis.  See also communication from World Health Organization (WHO) the day before the vote urging EU parliamentarians to approve proposed Tobacco Products Directive.)
• E-cigarettes declared illegal in Punjab, India.
• Altria sends letter to FDA supporting FDA exerting regulatory authority (“deeming”) over all currently unregulated tobacco products.
• SFATA sends letter to the Office of Management and Budget/Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OMB/OIRA) requesting a meeting and asking that OMB/OIRA reject FDA’s proposed deeming.
• Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) sends letter to FDAurging FDA to issue proposed regulations addressing advertising, ingredients and sales to minors before October 31, 2013.

November 2013:

• First E-Cigarette Summit was held at the Royal Society in London to provide a platform to present and scrutinize the available science and evidence on electronic cigarettes with the aim to help inform public health and policy debates that were being held in the run up to the vote on the European Tobacco Products Directive.
• First three electronic cigarette commercials banned in the U.K. “In their efforts to comply with the ad codes, the marketers were guilty of lack of clarity. All three spots are pretty obscure because they try so hard not to promote smoking that they neglect to mention what the product does. While they were condemned for being misleading, the ads were cleared by the ASA of being ‘irresponsible and harmful.'” (See here for full article.)
• SFATA hosts its first “day on the Hill” fly-in for SFATA members to meet with senior and staff legislators in Washington, D.C.
• Letter from Reps. Waxman, DeGette and Pallone to FDA re dangers of e-cigarette advertising. To see the accompanying slideshow, click here.
• Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK) issues press release demanding FDA regulation of electronic cigarettes.
• Ban on vaping in public lifted in Italy.

December 2013:  

• FDA hosts a webinar entitled “20 Years Later-Returning to FDA to Regulate Tobacco.” Presentation (including slides) can be viewed here.
• Six Senators send letter to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) urging an investigation of  e-cigarette marketing practices.
• American E-Liquid Manufacturing Standards Association (AEMSA) attends third listening session with FDA.

  2014

January 2014:

• CASAA provides testimony to OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs re FDA’s proposed deeming regulations (which proposed regulations hadn’t been publicly released at the time of the meeting).
• Burstyn’s “Peering through the mist: systematic review of what the chemistry of contaminants in electronic cigarettes tells us about health risks” published in BMC Public Health. By reviewing over 9,000 observations about the chemistry of the vapor and the liquid in e-cigarettes, Dr. Burstyn determined that the levels of contaminants e-cigarette users are exposed to are insignificant, far below levels that would pose any health risk.  Additionally, there is no health risk to bystanders. (CASAA provided a grant to Dr. Burstyn to fund this study.)
• Surgeon General issues, “The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the Surgeon General, 2014.”

February 2014:  Altria announces it will launch its MarkTen vapor product nationwide in the second quarter of 2014. Also announces its purchase of Green Smoke, Inc. for $110 million in cash (subject to closing adjustments) and up to $20 million in incentive payments.

March 2014:

• Various state attorneys general send letters to the CEOs of Wal-Mart, Walgreens, Rite-Aid, Safeway and Kroger.
• New York City C.L.A.S.H. (CLASH) filed a lawsuit against the City of New York and the New York City Council seeking to overturn a ban on e-cigarette use wherever smoking is prohibited. See here and here for more information on the lawsuit. CASAA donates $1,000 to support the effort.

April 2014:

• FDA releases proposed regulation attempting to exert regulatory authority of e-cigarettes as tobacco products. (See also the Preliminary Regulatory Impact Analysis, Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, Unfunded Mandates Reform Act Analysis.)
• Western Australia – The Magistrate’s Court ruled in Hawkins v. Van Heerden (October 2013) that Van Heerden did not violate S106(a) of the Tobacco Products Control Act 2006 (WA) (the “Act”). The matter was appealed by Hawkins, a compliance officer with the Department of Health, to the Supreme Court of Western Australia, which court ruled in April 2014 that Vince Van Heerden violated the Act by selling products (electronic cigarettes) designed to resemble a tobacco product.  Van Heerden appealed that decision to the Court of Appeal, but the appeal was dismissed in March 2016, meaning that it remains illegal in Western Australia to sell vapor product devices, regardless of whether they contain nicotine. (We note that the vapor products in question were described as “510-T” and “eGo-T,” which one would not describe as looking like traditional combustible cigarettes or cigars.) (In November 2014, CASAA made a donation of $500 to help fund the legal battle in an effort to help preserve consumer access to vapor products in Western Australia.)
• American Vaping Association (AVA), a nonprofit vapor industry advocacy organization, formed in December 2014 announces that Gregory Conley as its president. AVA champions the use of of vapor products and e-cigarettes to help smokers quit.

May 2014: CASAA releases an overview of its Action Plan regarding proposed FDA regulations

• CASAA issues the First Call to Action (encouraging consumers to request an extension of time to comment) and the Second Call to Action (encouraging consumers to comment on the Paperwork Reduction Act).
• CASAA submits a comment to OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs regarding Paperwork Reduction Act and FDA deeming regulation.
• European Union adopts Tobacco Products Directive (TPD), Directive 2014/40/EU, to be implemented by member states by May 20, 2016.

June 2014:

• CASAA issues Third Call to Action as part of its Action Plan, encouraging consumers to demand a congressional hearing involving CDC’s and FDA’s actions.
• Smoke-Free Alternatives Trade Association (SFATA) announces its Age to Vape™ program, which will distribute free age-restriction signs to brick-and-mortar vapor product retailers across the nation.
• First Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN) took place in Warsaw, Poland, in June 2014. The event attracted around 200 people from 26 countries and featured presentations from many of the world’s leading nicotine researchers and policy analysts. (See here for for Conference Report.)

July 2014:

• On July 15, 2014, Reynolds American agrees to buy Lorillard Tobacco Company for $27.4 billion. The deal also includes the sale of the Kool, Winston, Salem, and blu brands to Imperial Tobacco for $7.1 billion.
• CASAA issues Fourth Call to Action as part of its Action Plan, encouraging consumers to submit a comment in response to FDA’s proposed regulations. (See also streamlined version of Fourth Call to Action here.)

August 2014:

• Organizations submit comments involving FDA proposed regulations.
  • CASAA comment filed August 7, 2014
  • SFATA comment filed August 8, 2014
  • AEMSA comment filed August 8, 2014
  • Smokefree Pennsylvania comment filed August 8, 2014
  • Free To Vape project hand-delivered to FDA more than 40,000 comments from individual consumers and business owners ON August 8, 2014.
  • Lorillard commented filed August 7, 2014.
  • American Council on Science and Health comment filed June 27, 2014.
  • National Hookah Alliance comment filed August 8, 2014.
• Three Altria companies file comments:
  • Middleton comment filed August 8, 2014.
  • Nu Mark comment filed August 8, 2014.
  • Philip Morris USA comment filed August 7, 2014.
• RAI Services Company (Reynolds) comment filed August 8, 2014.
• Anti-e-cigarette organizations submit comments involving FDA proposed regulations.
  • Oregon Health Authority comment filed August 7, 2014.
  • Various organizations file joint comment August 7, 2014.
  • 29 State Attorneys General file joint comment August 8, 2014.
  • Public Health Seattle and King County file comment August 8, 2014.
• FDA opens a docket for public comment on modified risk tobacco product applications (MRTPAs) submitted by Swedish Match North America Inc. for 10 tobacco products. (Swedish Match’s actual application downloadable here.)
  • CASAA’s comment filed on November 25, 2014.
  • Public Health Agency of Sweden filed on February 23, 2015.
  • RAI Services Company (Reynolds) filed November 21, 2014.
  • Smokefree Pennsylvania filed November 25, 2014.
  • Lorillard filed February 11, 2015.
  • Clive Bates and other tobacco harm reduction experts filed November 18, 2014.

September 2014:

• FDA announces the first (December 10 and 11, 2014) of a series of three workshops on e-cigarettes and the public health.
• CASAA files comment on NIOSH proposed recommendations regarding workplace tobacco use.

October 2014:

• Six senators call for FDA to adopt aggressive warning labels for e-cigarettes.
• Launch of E-Research Foundation, a nonprofit 501(c)(3)organization established to further advance the scientific study of e-vapor products (aka electronic cigarettes), related products and their use.
• Pillbox 38 (UK) Limited (Totally Wicked) wins the right to formally challenge the validity of the EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) at the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) in Luxembourg.
• Third community-based effort to petition the White House regarding regulation of e-cigarettes. The minimum threshold of 100,000 signatures was obtained, and the response was again largely nonresponsive. (Response can be viewed at petition link.)

November 2014:

• Letter from Speaker of the House John Boehner, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and Chair of Energy & Commerce Committee Fred Upton to Sylvia Burwell (Secretary Department of Health and Human Services) asking that the grandfather date for newly deemed tobacco products be moved from February 15, 2007 to April 25, 2014 (date the proposed deeming regulation was published) or the date the regulation is finally published. (See also CASAA Call to Action issued December 2014 requesting legislators consider a different regulatory scheme for e-cigarettes and support a change in the grandfather date.)
• Oxford Dictionaries announces the word of the year is “vape.”

December 2014: First of three FDA workshops held, this one being on the physical characteristics of e-cigarettes. (You can find the transcript of that workshop here.) CASAA issues Call to Action March 2015.

2015

January 2015: CASAA relaunches its testimonials project and creates new website for its tobacco harm reduction success stories collection.

February 2015: Center for Environmental Health announces it is initiating legal action against 19 companies for alleged California Proposition 65 violations. (See here for analysis of the lawsuit.)

March 2015:

• Second of three FDA workshops held, this one being about issues related to individual health. (You can find the transcript of that workshop here.) CASAA issues Call to Action April 2015.
• California Department of Public Health (CDPH) announces its premiere of “a series of television, digital, and outdoor ads in a new campaign called ‘Wake Up,’ as part of its educational effort to inform the public about the dangers of e-cigarettes.” CDPH promotes the website stillblowingsmoke.org as part of that effort, which effort was promptly derailed by a campaign developed by Stefan Didak entitled “Not Blowing Smoke” (NBS) at a cost of less than $100. Within days, NBS dominated Twitter, almost completely eclipsing the CDPH’s multi-million dollar effort. (NBS was later incorporated in August 2015 as a California nonprofit.)

April 2015: Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC) holds a public hearing on Swedish Match’s modified risk tobacco product application (MRTP filed August 2014). TPSAC could not reach a consensus. Among other things, Swedish Match proposed replacing the warning that “This product is not a safe alternative to cigarettes” with the statement, “No tobacco product is safe, but this product presents substantially lower risks to health than cigarettes.” Four of the eight TPSAC members felt that the evidence presented did not support the alternate warning label.

May 2015:  Indiana passes HB 1432, which, among other things, prohibits e-liquid manufacturers (whether in-state or out-of-state) from selling products to retailers and distributors in Indiana without a permit. (See CASAA Indiana Call to Action issued in March 2015 for more details.) The permit would require compliance with burdensome and expensive manufacturing and security protocols that may be impossible to meet. Of particular concern, these requirements only apply to e-cigarette refill liquid used in open-system products and specifically do not apply to closed-system products (i.e., cigalikes). In response, a federal lawsuit was filed in May of 2015 by two out-of-state manufacturers and an in-state vendor. In September of 2015, The Right to be Smoke-Free Coalition filed a motion to intervene and its complaint. December 2015, Hoosier Vapers, Inc. and five other plaintiffs filed a lawsuit at the state level.

June 2015: Third of three FDA workshops held, this one being about issues related to population health. (You can find a transcript of that workshop here.) CASAA issues Call to Action June 2015.

August 2015: Public Health England announces its expert independent review concludes that e-cigarettes are significantly less harmful to health than smoking and have the potential to help smokers quit smoking.

September 2015:

• The Right to be Smoke-Free Coalition filed a motion to intervene and its complaintin the Indiana federal lawsuit filed in May of 2015 involving HB 1432.
• FDA issues proposed rule “Clarification of When Products Made or Derived From Tobacco Are Regulated as Drugs, Devices, or Combination Products.”
  • Comment filed by CASAA.
  • Comment filed by SFATA.
  • Comment filed by Smokefree Pennsylvania.
  • Comment filed by AEMSA.
  • Comment filed by Altria Client Services.

October 2015:

• Final deeming regulations delivered by FDA to OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) for review.
• TVECA announces it has a copy of the final deeming regulations and industry guidance and promises to release them to the public. TVECA only publishes what they claim to be a draft industry guidance document and the table of contents for the final deeming regulations. Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) releases a special statement, noting that FDA’s policy is not to release draft documents or negotiate with outside groups while documents are under review and refuse to confirm or deny that TVECA has authentic or current documents. “It is our understanding based on recent conversations between the FDA and TVECA, that the group will not be releasing the document in question.”
• Eleven U.S. Senators deliver a letter to OIRA, stating, among other things, “We urge OMB to work quickly to finalize review of the final deeming rule, ensuring that the rule gives FDA authority over all tobacco products including e-cigarettes and cigars, explicitly bans the use of flavorings and marketing that appeals to children, and mandates child-proof packaging of e-liquids (liquid nicotine). We also implore that the final rule not move the ‘grandfather date’ for new products (set at February 15, 2007). Altering this grandfather date would exempt a wide range of e-cigarettes and related products from any premarket review to determine whether they constitute threats to public health.”

November 2015:

• FDA grants PMTA approval to eight Swedish Match smokeless tobacco products. According to the FDA press release, “This action permits the tobacco products to be sold in the U.S., but does not mean that they are safe or ‘FDA approved.’” (See analysis by Carl Phillips here.)
• Several lawsuits filed, including (1) a class action lawsuit against Five Pawns, Inc. involving the presence of diacetyl and acetyl propionyl in their e-liquids and alleged failure to disclose or properly warn consumers, and (2) two lawsuits (here and here) filed by Center for Environmental Health (CEH) against various e-cigarette companies alleging California Proposition 65 violations. CEH reports that it has filed lawsuits against a total of 60 e-cigarette companies, only one of which was settled. (See analysis by Carl Phillips here.)
• Paper published in Tobacco Control wherein the authors alleged “brandalism” of CDC materials and claim that e-cigarette advocates with close ties to industry are misleading and deceiving the public and infringing on the government’s copyright. See commentary by Dr. Michael Siegel here, Not Blowing Smoke’s press release here, and Dr. Carl Phillips’ discussion here of the base inappropriateness of CDC’s campaign.

December 2015:

• CASAA meets with OMB/OIRA and presents 57-page report regarding the devastating impact of potential FDA deeming of electronic cigarettes. In addition, CASAA delivers more than 7,600 testimonials regarding consumer success stories and results from its survey of more than 20,000 members.
• Smokefree Pennsylvania submits 158-page report to OMB/OIRA calling for FDA’s proposed deeming regulation to be withdrawn.
• American E-Liquid Manufacturing Stands Association (AEMSA) meets with, andsubmits report to, OMB/OIRA.
• Nine Senators send a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) asking it to investigate unfair or deceptive acts of e-liquid retailers. In addition, these senators sent letters to various e-liquid retailers regarding possible marketing of nicotine-containing products using recognizable brand names of various foods and drinks. Letters were also sent to companies informing them that their brand names/images were being used in connection with e-liquid marketing and asking them what steps they were taking to prevent this kind of use.
• Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller issues a press release noting, “The harm of the combustible cigarette is dramatically greater than the harm of the e-cigarette.” Mr. Miller also corrects some of the misinformation regarding youth use of e-cigarettes and says, “adults misleading kids to get them to do what we want has always been a failed strategy.”
• City of Chicago Department of Public Health launched a campaign, which has been roundly criticized by tobacco harm reduction advocates. (See, for example, here and also CASAA’s Call to Action.)
• December 2015, Hoosier Vapers, Inc. and five other plaintiffs file a lawsuit in Indiana state court in connection with HB 1432.
• German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof (BGH)) holds that the nicotine-containing liquids used in electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) qualify as tobacco products and that their distribution and sale without a permit are therefore illegal.
• Advocate General (UK) issues nonbinding opinion upholding Article 20 of the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) against the challenge launched by Pillbox 28 (UK) Limited (Totally Wicked).

2016

January 2016:

• Vapor Technology Association (VTA), a national trade association, announces its launch.
• SEVIA USA, an association of Chinese e-cigarette manufacturers, forms in order to commit resources to fight against “unfair and burdensome FDA regulations.” SEVIA USA’s founding members include Aspire, Kangertech, Innokin, and SMOK.
• The country of Turkmenistan is reported to have banned the sale of all tobacco products.
• President Obama signs S 142, the Child Nicotine Poisoning Prevention Act of 2015, which requires the packaging of “liquid nicotine containers” to be subject to existing child poisoning prevention packaging standards, effective date of July 26, 2016.
• Appeal filed in New York City C.L.A.S.H. (CLASH) lawsuit against City of New York challenging City’s ban of e-cigarette use wherever smoking is prohibited. (This appeals the grant of summary judgment in favor of the City May 2015.)

February 2016:

• Coalition letter sent to members of Congress opposing FDA’s deeming regulation.
• National Centre for Smoking Cessation and Training (UK) issues a briefing making recommendations for stop smoking practitioners and services, providing common questions and suggested answers about e-cigarettes, and summarizes the evidence upon which these recommendations are drawn. See also commentary by Clive Bates on the import of this document here.

March 2016:

• Van Heerden had been previously convicted in April of 2014 by the Supreme Court (Western Australia) for violating S106(a) of the Tobacco Products Control Act 2006 (WA) (the “Act”). He sold electronic cigarettes (without nicotine), which the Supreme Court determined were products designed to resemble a tobacco product. Van Heerden appealed the conviction to the Court of Appeal (Western Australia), which appeal was dismissed in March 2016. It remains illegal in Western Australia to sell vapor product devices, regardless of whether they contain nicotine. (We note that the vapor products in question were described as “510-T” and “eGo-T,” which one would not describe as looking like traditional combustible cigarettes or cigars.)
• U.S. Department of Transportation bans e-cigarette use on planes. (For more detailed information, see here.)

April 2016:

• The Royal College of Physicians (UK) issued a 200-page report entitled “Nicotine without smoke: tobacco harm reduction, examining the science, public policy, regulation and ethics surrounding e-cigarettes and other non-tobacco sources of nicotine, and addressing these controversies and misunderstandings with conclusions based on the latest available evidence. Significantly, the report notes that “[s]mokers can . . . be reassured and encouraged to use them, and the public can be reassured that e-cigarettes are much safer than smoking.” (To download the full report, click here.)
• A 25 year old shopkeeper in Mohali (Punjab, India) sentenced to 3 years in jail for selling e-cigarettes in violation of the The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA). (Letter from Food & Drug Administration Punjab re e-cigarettes can be found here, and a copy of the court’s judgment dated April 7, 2016 can be found here.)
• Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) and CASAA filed a lawsuit challenging the Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) recent regulation extending the existing statute prohibiting smoking aboard aircraft to cover electronic cigarettes, maintaining that USDOT was exceeding the scope of its congressional grant of authority. (See also the comment filed by CEI and CASAA in November 21, 2011 in response to USDOT’s proposed rule and also this for further analysis of the legal underpinnings of the case. See also statement of issues filed May 2016 and brieffiled August 2016.)

May 2016:

• FDA’s final deeming regulations issued.
  • FDA’s press release.
  • The final deeming regulations officially published May 10, 2016, effective 90 days later on August 8, 2016.
  • Deeming Final Rule Redline Changes (OMB/OIRA changes primarily involving flavors).
  • Retailer Overview of FDA Regulations for Selling Tobacco Products
  • Communication Resources for Final Rule Extending Authorities to All Tobacco ProductsSmall Entity Compliance Guide: FDA Deems Certain Tobacco Products Subject to FDA Authority, Sales and Distribution Restrictions, and Health Warning Requirements for Packages and Advertisements.
  • Premarket Tobacco Product Applications for Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS).
  • Tobacco Product Master Files.
  • Requirements for the Submission of Data Needed to Calculate User Fees for Domestic Manufacturers and Importers of Cigars and Pipe Tobacco.
  • Small Entity Compliance Guide: Requirements for the Submission of Data Needed to Calculate User Fees for Domestic Manufacturers and Importers of Tobacco Products.
  • Final Regulatory Impact Analysis, Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, Unfunded Mandates Reform Act Analysis issued by FDA.
• Guidance on deeming regulations issued by industry groups:
  • SFATA Guidance
  • VTA Guidance
• Lawsuits filed challenging the deeming regulations:
  • Nicopure Labs files complaint in federal court (DC District) challenging the deeming regulations.
  • Lost Art Liquids files complaint in federal court (Central District CA) challenging the deeming regulations.
  • John Middleton Company LLC files complaint in federal court (DC District) challenging FDA’s authority to ban the use of the word “mild” to describe/brand their Black and Mild cigars.
• 17 U.S. Senators (Democrats) send letter to FDA demanding additional regulations on flavoring and marketing.
• Coalition (R Street Institute, Americans for Tax Reform, Campaign for Liberty, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste, FreedomWorks, Heartland Institute, Jeffersonian Project, Less Government, Log Cabin Republicans, National Taxpayers Union, and Taxpayers Protection Alliance) sends letter to Committee on Energy and Commerce requesting that Congress pass HR 2058 to change the predicate date for newly deemed tobacco products (which would include e-cigarettes).
• Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, sent a letter to FDA raising concerns about the agency’s recent e-cigarette regulation, which could create undue burdens on small businesses and possibly lead to negative unintended health consequences.
• European Court of Justice upholds Article 20 of the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD), dismissing several lawsuits, including one by Totally Wicked (Pillbox 38) which claimed Article 20 was a disproportionate impediment to the free movement of goods and the free provision of services, placed electronic cigarettes at an unjustified competitive disadvantage to tobacco products, failed to comply with the general EU principle of equality, and breached the fundamental rights of electronic cigarette manufacturers.
• The documentary “A Billion Lives” makes its world premiere at the 2016 Doc Edge Film Festival in New Zealand.

June 2016:

• Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, sent a second letter to FDA raising concerns about new e-cigarette regulations, a follow-up to his previous letter to FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf on May 17, 2016.
• Global Premium Cigars files complaint in federal court (Southern District of FL, Miami Division) challenging the deeming regulations.
• Right to be Smoke-Free Coalition (RSF) files lawsuit in federal court (DC District) challenging the deeming regulations, and court orders it consolidated with the Nicopure Labs lawsuit.

July 2016:

• Pennsylvania enacts a 40% wholesale tax on “other tobacco products” (smokeless tobacco, roll-your-own tobacco, pipe tobacco, and e-cigarettes). The tax, effective October 1, 2016, is on not on e-liquid, but also devices, batteries, and most accessories. It also includes a crippling 40% floor tax on all inventory assessed October 1, 2016 and payable 90 days later. (You can see the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue’s guidance here.) Pennsylvania is also assessing the tax on consumers who purchase products out of state.  More information about the devastating impact of the tax can be found here.

August 2016:

• CEI and CASAA file a brief in lawsuit challenging DOT’s authority to redefine “smoking” to ban e-cigarette use on planes.
• World Health Organization (WHO) issues a report entitled “Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems and Electronic Non-Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS/ENNDS)” in response to a request made by the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

September 2016:

• FDA issues first warning letters for sales to minors of newly deemed tobacco products (e-cigarettes/e-liquids and cigars).
• NJOY files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In his declaration to the court, interim President Jeffrey Weiss blames the company’s troubles in part on (1) failure of King 2.0 brand , (2) increased relaunch expense and research and development costs, (3) governmental regulation and increased legal expense associated with FDA regulation and state restrictions, (4) expenses related to intellectual property litigation and prosecution (primarily involving lawsuit with Fontem Ventures BV), (5) limited liquidity and capital resources.
• Anti-vaping groups send letter to Senators Thad Cochran, Jerry Moran, Barbara Mikulski, and Jeff Merkley asking that they deny attempts to allow policy riders that would modernize the predicate date for newly deemed products or exempt cigars.

October 2016:

• Right to Vape Tour  launched as a joint effort by CASAA, SFATA, and AVA. The Right to Vape coalition is urging Congress to change the “predicate date” of the Tobacco Control Act from February 15th of 2007 to August 8th of 2016, a recognition that a new industry selling products that are at least 95% less harmful than combustible cigarettes should not be treated more harshly than cigarettes ever were. Without a change in the predicate date, an estimated 99% of the vapor products currently on the market will be eliminated, thousands of businesses will close, and millions of consumers will lose access to these low-risk products.
• UK Centre for Tobacco & Alcohol Studies issues response to WHO’s report on electronic nicotine delivery systems and electronic non-nicotine delivery systems. (Response can be downloaded here.)
• ASH publishes Fact Sheet – Use of electronic cigarettes among children in Great Britain detailing statistics on youth (ages 11-18).
• Tom Miller, Iowa Attorney General and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Truth Initiative, spoke about the promise vapor products hold for millions of smokers and of the importance of regulating based on comparative risk. Text of his powerful remarks at the FDLI tobacco conference can be found here. See also Clive Bates’ commentary on AG Miller’s talk (and text of talk) at November 17, 2016 E-Cigarette Summit.

November 2016:

• CASAA issues its first voting guide.
• Tobacco Harm Reduction Expert Group (Konstantinos E. Farsalinos M.D.; Professor Riccardo Polosa; Christopher Russell Ph.D.; Amir Ullah Khan Ph.D.; Julian Morris; and Prof. Rajesh N. Sharan) issues its mission statement. Among other things, the group notes its support of government policies that seek to remove barriers to the availability of better, safer, non-combustible nicotine delivery products, with appropriate quality standards and regulations, and the group urges the World Health Organization (WHO) to apply harm reduction strategies in connection with its tobacco control efforts.
• Senator Ron Johnson (Chairman of Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs) sent a letter to FDA Commissioner Califf, noting, “In light of the significant economic costs on the e-cigarette industry and the substantial likelihood that the incoming Administration and the 115th Congress will unwind this burdensome regulation, I call on the FDA to cease its implementation of the current regulation over e-cigarettes.”
• Final briefs filed in CEI v. DOT lawsuit re DOT redefining “smoking” to include vaping. See here for CEI’s final reply brief, here for CEI’s final opening brief, and here for DOT’s brief.
• U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) bans smoking in public housing, but specifically declines to ban vaping, noting that, “Unlike with products that involve burning of substances, there is little evidence that ENDS significantly increases fire risks, and there is no conclusive evidence that the vapors emitted by ENDS cause damage to the units themselves. Therefore, prohibiting ENDS will not necessarily reduce the risk of catastrophic fires or maintenance costs for PHAs, and this rule does not prohibit the use of ENDS.”
• In California, Proposition 56, which was sold to voters as a necessary hike in cigarette taxes, passed, enacting an equivalent tax of 60-70% wholesale on vapor products sold in the state. Colorado (Amendment 72) and North Dakota (Measure 4) both voted down ballot initiatives that dealt with taxation of vapor/tobacco products.

December 2016:

• New Nicotine Alliance (NNA) issues briefing paper entitled, “Revision of the Tobacco Excise Directive, Implications for Low-Risk Nicotine Products.” Among other things, NNA maintains that there should be no excise tax on e-cigarettes, vapor products, or smoke-free tobacco products (i.e., smokeless tobacco and heated tobacco products).
• Vapor Technology Association issues guidance on FDA registration and product listing.
• FDA issues industry guidance on tobacco health document submission.
• Philip Morris International (PMI) announces it has filed a modified risk tobacco product (MRTP) application with FDA for its heated tobacco product (IQOS). Altria announces it will have exclusive rights to market this product in the U.S. (For more information on the MRTP process, see here.)
• U.S. Surgeon General releases a report entitled, “E-Cigarette Use Among Youth and Young Adults,” along with an accompanying website. Tobacco harm reduction advocates were sharply critical of the report. (You can view CASAA’s response, as well as the response of other tobacco harm reduction advocates, here.)
• Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) and Representative Duncan Hunter (R-CA) send a letterto Vice President-elect Pence calling for FDA overreach to be reigned in, noting, “As we continue to pursue legislative options that will protect the thousands of small businesses that rely on producing and selling e-cigarettes, we respectfully urge the new Administration to consider repealing or suspending the FDA’s burdensome deeming regulation over e-cigarettes.”