Honorable Sen. [insert name here],
I was very disappointed to see your letter (http://www.help.senate.gov/ranking/newsroom/press/senate-dems-fda-rule-is-critical-step-to-protecting-children-and-teens-from-tobacco-products-) cheering on the arbitrary and capricious FDA rule (Docket ID: FDA-2014-N-0189; RIN: 0910-AG38) "deeming" harmless, effective, smoke- & tobacco-free vapor technology as "tobacco products." This ruling, which will eliminate 99.99% of all vaping products on the market, is at odds with the overwhelming scientific consensus on the topic and an imminent threat to the health of the public.
Recently, the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) published a 200-page systematic review of all high-quality evidence and concluded that vaping products are nearly harmless and effective. RCP also instructed all healthcare professionals to promote vaping as widely as possible in the interest of public health (https://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/news/promote-e-cigarettes-widely-substitute-smoking-says-new-rcp-report). The evidence summarized by RCP demonstrates that vaping not only helps smokers quit, but also prevents youth from ever starting, thus functioning in the real world as a vaccine against smoking. In the USA, two independent studies, one from Yale University (medicine.yale.edu/news/article.aspx?id=11459) and the other from Cornell University (weill.cornell.edu/news/news/2016/03/electronic-cigarette-age-restrictions-may-drive-teens-to-traditional-cigarettes.html), concluded that prohibiting access to nearly harmless vapor products causes youth to start and keep smoking instead.
We The People who quit smoking with the help of vaping products have been anticipating this ruling for years, ever since disgraced, former FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg (http://ahrp.org/former-fda-commissioner-charged-in-federal-racketeering-lawsuit/) first banned vaping products in 2009. We are intimately familiar with all the scientific literature on this topic, as well as the political and financial motives underlying such bans (http://trenchreynolds.com/2014/08/16/why-the-states-bad-deals-with-tobacco-are-bad-for-vaping/). The 40 million American citizens who smoke deserve a chance to access the most effective substitute for smoking developed so far, regardless of the financial implications for tobacco-tax-dependent state and federal governments (https://youtu.be/zSq9iqal2cA).
In the name of 9 million American ex-smoker vapers and 40 million current smokers, I urge you to review the evidence, dismiss self-serving propaganda from tobacco-tax-funded organizations and reconsider your position. Please also take steps to overturn the FDA deeming and hold to account those responsible for this grossly negligent public health malpractice.
Sincerely,
[The People]
