The administration of US President Joe Biden abandoned the plan to ban menthol cigarettes, as the White House emphasized the benefits of this matter for public health. Still, it was found that moving forward with this plan would anger voters, especially those of African descent, in the year of the presidential elections.
The Biden administration said on Friday that it was “postponing a decision on imposing a ban” on these cigarettes, considering that it needed further consultation with experts, without specifying a timetable for reconsidering the decision.
Mint cigarettes represent more than a third of the American market every year. They are often used by smokers of African origin or those coming from South American countries.
According to the newspaper’s analysis of data from the National Survey on Drug Abuse and Health, more than 80 percent of African Americans use mint cigarettes, compared to 30 percent of white Americans or 51 percent of Americans of South American origin, according to data dating back to 2017,2020.
African American community leaders expressed their opposition to banning these cigarettes, which would lead to the creation of a black market for mint cigarettes if they were forbidden.
In a statement, Xavier Becerra, US Secretary of Health and Human Services, said that the proposed “ban has sparked a lot of backlash from the civil rights and justice movements.”
He pointed out that there would be more talks, which “would take longer.”
In 2021, the Biden administration began policies to impose a ban on menthol cigarettes to reduce young people’s tendency to smoke and increase smoking cessation rates as part of an initiative to reduce the death rate from cancer.
Despite decades of anti-smoking campaigns, about half a million people die every year in the United States as a result of smoking, which costs about 300 billion dollars annually in health services and loss of productivity, according to the Food and Drug Administration itself.
Nicotine itself does not cause cancer, heart disease, or lung disease, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Still, it causes addiction and, thus, the death of hundreds of thousands of smokers every year in America.
Menthol is a compound found naturally in mint plants. It has been added to cigarettes since the 1920s to provide a cooling sensation in the mouth, which relieves throat irritation caused by cigarette smoke, thus making cigarettes more attractive to young people and those who have never smoked.
The Biden administration’s decision to postpone the proposed ban on menthol cigarettes shows the issue’s complexity. While advocates argue that banning menthol could significantly reduce public health, concerns about unintended consequences, like creating a black market, are also significant.
The delay suggests a need for further evaluation and consideration of the broader social and economic implications of thorough assessment and consultation to find solutions that prioritize health and equity for all.
The Biden administration’s decision to delay the menthol cigarette ban underscores the importance of carefully weighing public health priorities while considering the broader social and economic impacts is crucial for effective policymaking.
