The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's proposal to ban menthol flavored cigarettes in the United States faced another setback, according to anti-tobacco advocates who noted that White House officials have missed another deadline to issue a final rule on a ban.
The White House declined to comment.
Menthol cigarettes account for a third of the industry's overall market share in the United States. The highly addictive products have been cited for their appeal to young smokers, as well as significant health impacts for Black communities, where they are marketed heavily.
After the FDA in 2022 issued a long-awaited proposal to ban menthol cigarettes, several health and anti-smoking groups urged the Biden administration to enforce it.
The Administration delayed issuing a final rule in December and now has missed the new deadline it set to issue the rule by March 2024, according to a statement on Monday from the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids and the NAACP, both of which support the FDA's push for a ban of menthol cigarettes.
Civil rights groups have contended for years that menthol cigarettes pose a disproportionately higher risk in Black communities, where they are heavily marketed.
About 81% of Black adults who smoked cigarettes used menthol varieties, compared with 34% of white adults, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
States including Massachusetts and California have previously banned all flavored tobacco products.
U.S.-focused tobacco company Altria and rival British American Tobacco both get more than 20% of their revenue from menthol, Morningstar analyst Philip Gorham estimated in notes in March.
Altria has the largest exposure, Gorham said, though British American also has high sales of menthol versions of top brands like Newport.
BAT cited uncertainty around the menthol ban as one factor in its decision to write down the value of some of its U.S. cigarette brands last year.
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