The Trump administration has announced that it is preparing to ban all non-tobacco flavoured e-cigarettes, CNBC Reported.

According to the report, the increase in underage vaping in the United States is one of the reasons why they plan on banning flavours, at least until the FDA has “thoroughly reviewed their safety”, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said. In addition to that, Trump has asked the FDA to get to the bottom of the outbreak of more than 450 cases of lung disease associated with vaping, the report said.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently developing guidelines to remove all non-tobacco flavours of e-cigarettes from the market within 30 days. According to the report, companies may be allowed to reintroduce their flavours onto the market in the future if they submit a formal application and receive approval from the FDA.
“The Trump Administration is making it clear that we intend to clear the market of flavoured e-cigarettes to reverse the deeply concerning epidemic of youth e-cigarette use that is impacting children, families, schools and communities,” Azar said. “We will not stand idly by as these products become an on-ramp to combustible cigarettes or nicotine addiction for a generation of youth.” Azar said that they want to continue to allow the sale of tobacco-flavoured e-cigarettes on the market for adults who may be using them to quit smoking, the report said. The FDA has welcomed e-cigarettes as a less harmful way for smokers to satisfy their nicotine addiction than smoking cigarettes.
In the aftermath of this announcement, shares of Altria, which owns a 35 per cent stake in e-cigarette company Juul, fell by less than 1 per cent, CNBC reported. Shares of PMI Group, Japan Tobacco, and British American Tobacco and Imperial Brands increased by between 1 per cent and 3 per cent.