FDA Says PMTA Reviews to Take Until End of Year
Credit: F Armstrong Photo
In a court filing this week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration stated it will take until possibly December 31, 2023, before it completes a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) review process for some of the most popular vapes on the market.
Upon being informed of the delay, Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois began demanding the FDA act immediately in removing e-cigarettes and vaping products from store shelves saying the agency has ignored a court order requiring them to take action by September 2021.
“On Tuesday, in a stunning filing to the federal judge, the Food and Drug Administration disclosed that it will take another six-month delay in fulfilling the public health duty announced by the court years ago. That the Food and Drug Administration will not finish reviewing applications for the most popular e-cigarettes until the end of 2023, is another outrageous delay,” said Durbin. “How can this federal agency knowingly, willingly ignore this court order to protect America’s children?”
Durbin, who has repeatedly urged FDA to complete the premarket review of e-cigarettes, called on FDA to use its authority to swiftly remove any and all unreviewed vaping products from store shelves for the safety of American consumers.
“While the FDA has dithered, dallied and delayed, more than one million of America’s kids have started vaping,” Durbin stated this week calling on the agency to obey the court order. “Not next year. Not next month. Immediately. Today,” Durbin stated in a release.