AMA Debates Banning Menthol Cigarettes
Members of the American Medical Association met on Tuesday to discuss a bill that could ban the flavor menthol from cigarettes.
The bill being discussed before Congress would give control of tobacco products to the Food and Drug Administration. The bill would ban flavor additives such as mint, clove and vanilla, which appeal to young people.
Government estimates show that more than 75 percent of black smokers and fewer than 25 percent of white smokers prefers menthol.
"If we’re banning things such as clove and peppermint, then we should ban menthol," said Dr. Louis Sullivan, health secretary from 1989 to 1993 under President George H.W. Bush and one of seven former health secretaries who sent a letter to lawmakers voicing opposition to the menthol exemption. "If it doesn’t happen, this bill will be discriminatory against African-Americans."
However, the AMA president and many delegates support the menthol exemption pushed by the cigarette industry. On Tuesday, the AMA voted to refer the decision on menthol to its board, effectively silencing the doctors who wanted the organization to speak out against the exemption.
The menthol exemption helped congressional leaders reach a bipartisan compromise on legislation that would put cigarettes under government regulation.
Supporters of the bill say it would give the FDA authority to reduce harmful ingredients in cigarettes, require new health warnings and bar misleading labels such as "light" and "mild."
“Removing the menthol exemption from the bill might derail the legislation,” said Dr. Ron Davis, a preventive medicine specialist who is wrapping up his one-year term as president.
Davis said that while other flavor additives are aimed at luring young smokers, menthol was different. He said banning it would merely drive mature black smokers to other brands, said Davis. "It would change the entire political dynamic."
The National African American Tobacco Prevention Network said that menthol cigarettes such as Kool were marketed during the 1960s in advertising campaigns targeting urban blacks. Last month, that group withdrew its support from the tobacco control bill over the menthol exemption and found allies in the former health secretaries.
Robert McCaffree of the American College of Chest Physicians, the group that introduced the AMA proposal, said the exemption harms the black community. He said that cigarette maker Philip Morris USA supports the bill and the exemption.
“The group believes a superior tobacco control bill could be crafted without the support of Philip Morris, which makes several menthol brands,” said William S. Robinson, executive director of the African American Tobacco Prevention Network.
"We understand from an industry perspective why menthol is off the table," Robinson said. "We think part of it is because menthol represents almost 30 percent of the $70 billion U.S. cigarette market."
The bill would give the FDA authority to remove ingredients that are determined harmful to health, said Philip Morris spokesman Bill Phelps.
"Based on our scientific judgment, menthol does not increase the inherent hazards of smoking," Phelps said.
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