FDA authorizes an e-cigarette for first time, saying benefit for smokers outweighs risk to youths
Bryan Pietsch
This article by Bryan Pietsch appeared in The Washington Post on October 13.
The Food and Drug Administration authorized a set of e-cigarette products for sale in the United States for the first time on Tuesday after it concluded that the benefit to adult cigarette smokers outweighed the risk posed to young people.
The FDA authorized only tobacco-flavored nicotine cartridges and denied requests from R.J. Reynolds for 10 flavored products, saying that young people typically start e-cigarette use, often called vaping, not with tobacco but with flavors such as fruit, candy or mint.