Nicholas Florko at StatNews just published an excellent piece using the newly-released Juul internal documents to describe how the company worked behind the scenes in Washington all the way down to local governments to influence, legislators, the Administration, regulatory agencies, local governments and public opinion generally by campaign contributions, quietly hiring a range of politicalContinue reading “Juul’s internal playbook opens a rare window into influence in Washington”
Category Archives: tobacco companies
Banning menthol leads a quarter of menthol smokers to quit
The two justifications for the FDA’s proposed product standard prohibiting menthol cigarettes and cigars are (1) it will reduce youth initiation, and (2) it will help menthol smokers to quit. Now Sarah Mills and colleagues have published a review and meta-analysis of the effects of menthol bans around the world, The Impact of Menthol CigaretteContinue reading “Banning menthol leads a quarter of menthol smokers to quit”
Relevant to COP10: Pharmaceuticalisation as the tobacco industry’s endgame
Yogi Hendlin, Eileen Han and Pam Ling’s new paper Pharmaceuticalisation as the tobacco industry’s endgame provides a detailed analysis of how the multinational tobacco companies have developed and used the companies efforts to reposition themselves a source for “clean” nicotine while simultaneously maintaining and expanding their sales of cigarettes and other “traditional” tobacco products whereContinue reading “Relevant to COP10: Pharmaceuticalisation as the tobacco industry’s endgame”
COP10 delegates need to base decisions on latest e-cig evidence, not the same old studies e-cig advocates promote
In the lead up to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Tenth Conference of the Parties that starts today, advocates for e-cigarettes and other “reduced harm” tobacco products have been busy again arguing that delegates should embrace these products. In reviewing some of this material, I have been struck by the fact that theirContinue reading “COP10 delegates need to base decisions on latest e-cig evidence, not the same old studies e-cig advocates promote”
First 280,000 Juul documents publicly available, millions more to come
One of the key provisions of North Carolina’s 2021 settlement with Juul was that the documents produced in litigation would be made available to the public. The settlement required that the documents be made available through a depository run by a North Carolina university. To accomplish this, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University LibrariesContinue reading “First 280,000 Juul documents publicly available, millions more to come”
Read Times (London) insightful articles detailing tobacco companies’ hidden efforts to protect vaping
Times of London investigative reporter Billy Kneber published four excellent articles documenting how major tobacco companies have been manipulating England to promote and protect e-cigarettes. While , as he notes, the strategies are nothing new, but the specific details provide important insights into the industry’s successes in England, including specific organizations and people and how theContinue reading “Read Times (London) insightful articles detailing tobacco companies’ hidden efforts to protect vaping”
WHO issues important call to action on ecigs
The World Health Organization has released a call to action and supporting technical note that provides detailed guidance for countries on how to battle the e-cigarette epidemic. The WHO both supports countries who have prohibited the import and sale of e-cigarettes and provides detailed evidence-based guidance for those who allow sale of e-cigarettes. The Biden WhiteContinue reading “WHO issues important call to action on ecigs”
Biden follows Obama and Trump by caving to industry pressure to delay menthol ban
Last week the Biden White House announced it was delaying a decision on the FDA’s well-reasoned product standards that would end the use of menthol in cigarettes and cigars, sparking outrage from leaders in the African American community: The White House is ignoring the real human cost of delay. Based on the Biden FDA’s analysis, everyContinue reading “Biden follows Obama and Trump by caving to industry pressure to delay menthol ban”
The evidence that tobacco industry-affiliated studies are more likely to support industry positions continues to grow, this time regarding heated tobacco products
There is already strong evidence that studies funded by the tobacco industry (and other industries) are more likely to support industry positions on e-cigarettes and harm reduction. A new study from Japan shows the same thing for heated tobacco products (HTP). Suzuki, H.; Aono, N.; Zhang, Y.; Yuri, K.; Brou, M.A.M.B.E. Takemura, S.; Higashiyama, A.;Continue reading “The evidence that tobacco industry-affiliated studies are more likely to support industry positions continues to grow, this time regarding heated tobacco products”
High tobacco industry influence increased in US in 2023, often working through third parties and front groups
Last month Action on Smoking and Health released its 2023 US Tobacco Industry Interference Index, the latest in a series of reports that assesses tobacco industry interference in US policy making against international standards (press release). The new report finds a modest increase in already-high industry interference in the US and provides many specific examples.Continue reading “High tobacco industry influence increased in US in 2023, often working through third parties and front groups”