President Joe Biden’s administration is once again delaying a proposed rule to ban menthol cigarettes with the health secretary saying more talks are needed, reports Bloomberg.

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said his team was still going through “an immense amount of feedback,” including from civil rights activists and criminal justice reform advocates, reports Bloomberg. “It’s clear that there are still more conversations to have and that will take significantly more time,” Becerra said in a statement.
With the election looming in November, Biden’s team fears it could lose some Black voters if he goes through with the proposed ban on menthol products.
While it looks like the ban is shelfed for the moment, it certainly isn’t off the table completely and could be brought up again after the election.
“It is clear from the reporting and the statement from HHS that the Biden Administration is not abandoning these plans permanently at this stage,” said Jefferies analyst Owen Bennett, adding that if Donald Trump wins, a ban would be less likely.
According to Bloomberg, numerous health groups criticized the delay saying it was putting the tobacco industry over public health.
“This decision prioritizes politics over lives, especially Black lives,” said Yolonda Richardson, president of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, citing a poll carried out late last year that shows that Black voters in fact support a menthol ban.
The American Lung Association said it was “deeply disappointed that the president is delaying these rules. More kids will start to smoke, and more people who would otherwise quit will not.”