FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Doctors for America
PO Box: 21161
2300 18th St NW Lbby
Washington, DC 20009-9996
May 13, 2025
Doctors for America’s FDA Task Force Statement on Decision to Withdraw FDA Ban on Menthol Cigarettes
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Doctors for America’s (DFA) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Task Force is deeply disappointed by the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw the FDA’s plan to ban menthol cigarettes.
The FDA Task Force has been working passionately on this issue for years. As physicians, we know intimately the impact tobacco-related illnesses and deaths have on families and our communities. The reality is that menthol-flavored cigarettes increase the addictiveness and appeal of smoking. Studies have shown that implementing this rule would save approximately 654,000 lives over the next 40 years. We urge the administration to reconsider this decision.
Last month, the FDA fired dozens of staff at the Center for Tobacco Products. This office enforces civil penalties and works to keep tobacco products out of the hands of minors. The office was effectively shuttered during the administration’s reduction-in-force efforts to save taxpayers money, but the office is funded by user fees collected from the industry, not taxes.
The administration has stated that ending the chronic disease epidemic is central to the goal of “making America healthy again,” but this decision flies in the face of that goal. Smoking cessation is a primary modifiable cause of chronic conditions. The withdrawal of this plan is weighing politics over the health of the American people.
For press inquiries and to speak more on this issue with members of the Doctors for America FDA Task Force please contact Alli Everton with Continuum Health Group ([email protected]).
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About Doctors for America:
Doctors for America mobilizes doctors and medical students to be leaders in putting patients over politics to improve the health of our patients, communities, and nation. DFA is an organization of over 27,000 physician and medical student advocates in all 50 states, representing all areas of specialization. DFA teaches physicians and medical students advocacy skills and does advocacy at a state and federal level. Our impact areas focus on access to affordable care, community health and prevention, and health justice and equity. DFA focuses solely on what is best for our patients, not on the business side of medicine, and does not accept any funding from pharmaceutical or medical device companies, which uniquely positions DFA as the organization that puts patients over politics and patients over profits. Find out more at doctorsforamerica.org and on X drsforamerica or Bluesky drsforamerica.bsky.social.