Menthol cigarettes, which continue to be used disproportionately by racial and ethnic minority smokers, LGBT smokers, and youth, are largely responsible for tobacco-related health disparities among these groups. Despite this, menthol flavored tobacco products continue to be widely available throughout the U.S. In recent years, a growing number of communities have taken steps to regulate … Read More

The 1998 Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) is an accord reached between the state Attorneys General of 46 states, five U.S. territories, the District of Columbia and the four largest cigarette manufacturers in America concerning the advertising, marketing, promotion of cigarettes, and compensation for health-care costs connected to tobacco-related illness. To commemorate the 20th anniversary … Read More

The retail environment is a place that influences many aspects of health, including both tobacco use behaviors and food and beverage purchasing and consumption. Tobacco retailers are often locked into promotional contracts with retailers that can dictate where products are displayed, the amount of advertising, as well as product prices and promotional incentives (more on this … Read More

On September 12, 2018, the FDA announced “historic action,” issuing 1,300 enforcement actions against retailers for selling Juul and other e-cigarettes to minors. While robust enforcement is a critical element of the FDA’s response to the public health crisis caused by Juul and other similar products, there is a lot of information about the FDA’s … Read More

As the 2019 legislative sessions get underway, the tobacco control movement is once again facing a growing threat from state laws that preempt local action on tobacco control policies. Last year the tobacco industry successfully inserted last-minute preemption clauses in must-pass bills in Hawaii and Pennsylvania. This year we are already hearing about preemption legislation … Read More

Ending the Menthol Trap Join the Youth Engagement Alliance and guest presenter Dr. Phillip Gardiner for a discussion about menthol cigarettes, flavored tobacco products and their disproportionate impact on the health of American youth. The scientific evidence leaves no doubt that menthol cigarettes increase the number of people, particularly kids, and especially African-American kids, who … Read More

According to both the FDA Commissioner and the Surgeon General, youth nicotine addiction is now an epidemic, fueled by the soaring success of JUUL and similar e-cigarettes. Although this alarm is widely shared by public health officials at all levels of government, many important regulatory tools to tackle this problem have been left unused.  This … Read More

Counter Tools Healthy POS webinar series: Reversing Preemption - A Colorado Case Study Preemption is the way by which the authority of a "lower" level of government is limited by a "higher" level of government. The tobacco industry and its allies have continued to use preemptive strategies to deter efforts made especially at the local-level. … Read More

On March 13, 2019, the FDA issued a draft guidance document outlining its intentions to begin addressing the youth e-cigarette epidemic in a more robust fashion through enforcement of premarket review. This webinar will walk through all the FDA’s proposed actions, providing context and analysis of the agency’s plan. Speakers from the Public Health Law … Read More