Supreme Court to hear case over FDA's ability to ban e-cigarette flavors
July 2 (UPI) -- The Supreme Court agreed on Tuesday to hear a case challenging the Food and Drug Administration's authority to approve flavored e-cigarettes.
The hearing in front of the Supreme Court will be a test case on the power of the FDA to regulate the e-cigarette industry at a time when there are growing concerns over vaping and the industry's aggressive outreach toward adolescents.
While the FDA has been mostly successful in the courts, the case in front of the Supreme Court comes after the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of two vaping companies who want their products approved over FDA objections.
Triton Distribution and Vapestasia managed to get the rare win in federal court and hope the Supreme Court will side with them in obtaining approval for flavors including "Signature Series Mom's Pistachio" and "Suicide Bunny Mother's Milk and Cookies."
The manufacturers and retailers have argued that the products help tobacco smokers find new alternatives.
The FDA, however, has said while it has approved the marketing of some tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes, it has rejected many more meant to taste like candy, fruit and dessert, citing health risks and the potential to entice users, particularly young people to use tobacco.
"FDA's regulatory regime has been anything but reasonable," the challengers told the court, according to USA Today.
"Although it is possible that an applicant could show that the benefits of a particular flavored product outweigh its harms, the FDA has denied authorization to applicants that have failed to make that showing."'
