Lawyers Ask Judge to Lift Ban on Electronic Cigarettes

[Satyr]

Here is an article posted which gives a small taste of what went down in court today. I can't find much else on the subject. I'm sure we'll hear more as things progress.

The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times : Lawyers Ask Judge to Lift Ban on Electronic Cigarettes

My favorite part of the article:

Lawyers for electronic cigarette distributors told a federal judge today that their clients do not market their products as a way to quit smoking, and that the Food and Drug Administration was acting like “a dog chasing its own tail” as it tried to explain why it was barring shipments of the devices into the United States.

 

[eplanet]

This was just a hearing...these things can take a while. Things will get interesting...

 

[Moobyghost]

Someone dig it!

 

[Mycide]

Someone dig it!

dugg

I wasn't sure if gadgets was the correct category, seemed fitting.

 

[yvilla]

Here is an article posted which gives a small taste of what went down in court today. I can't find much else on the subject. I'm sure we'll hear more as things progress.

The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times : Lawyers Ask Judge to Lift Ban on Electronic Cigarettes

My favorite part of the article:

Quote:

Lawyers for electronic cigarette distributors told a federal judge today that their clients do not market their products as a way to quit smoking, and that the Food and Drug Administration was acting like “a dog chasing its own tail” as it tried to explain why it was barring shipments of the devices into the United States.
Lawyers for electronic cigarette distributors told a federal judge today that their clients do not market their products as a way to quit smoking, and that the Food and Drug Administration was acting like “a dog chasing its own tail” as it tried to explain why it was barring shipments of the devices into the United States.

I loved it too! And it's based on the FDA's totally flawed argument as presented in it's supplemental brief in opposition: Circular logic par excellence!

The controversy in a nutshell: The FDA claims that ecigs are drug devices. SE and NJoy contend that no, they are "tobacco products", the functional equivalent of cigarettes.

The FDA acknowledges SE and NJoy's argument that the new tobacco legislation provides that tobacco products (including new limited risk products) shall not be regulated under the drugs and drug devices section of the Food Drug and Cosmetics Act, but instead shall be regulated only under the newly written tobacco products section.

But then it goes on to argue that since drugs/drug devices (things like the patch, etc) are excluded from the definition of "tobacco products", ecigs cannot be deemed to fall under the tobacco products section of the new law, because it has decided they are drug devices - the very question in controversy in the first place!

No lie - that is their circular argument - see it on pages three and four of their supplemental brief. http://www.fda.gov/downloads/NewsEvents/PublicHealthFocus/UCM173193.pdf

 

[GregH]

I just Dugg it and commented on it as well.

 

[smiley7]

dugg it!

Lawyers Ask Judge to Lift Ban on Electronic Cigarettes

 

[jmvallee]

Here is an article posted which gives a small taste of what went down in court today. I can't find much else on the subject. I'm sure we'll hear more as things progress.

The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times : Lawyers Ask Judge to Lift Ban on Electronic Cigarettes

Is the hearing over - all arguments presented?
Don't know much about legal process... Have any idea how long it will take to get a ruling about this? 1 week, 1 month, 6 months????

 

[pbusardo]

From Becker, David A - Latham & Watkins LLP ,

We felt that the hearing went well. As expected, the judge did not give a specific time for a decision, but we are hoping to hear something in the next few weeks. thanks again for all of your assistance.

 

[DaBrat]

“We don’t want people weaned off the e-cigarette,” Schwartz said. “We want them smoking it as long as they smoked regular cigarettes.”

Well while this may be true, may not have been the smartest thing to say. NOW the FDA will say that they are trying to create a new class of addicts.

 

[yknotagain]

Dugg and commented.

 

[kardjunkie]

“We don’t want people weaned off the e-cigarette,” Schwartz said. “We want them smoking it as long as they smoked regular cigarettes.”

Well while this may be true, may not have been the smartest thing to say. NOW the FDA will say that they are trying to create a new class of addicts.

No not the smartest thing to say but tobacco companies have been doing it and saying it for years. Soda drink companies have also been using addictive ingredient for years for the same purpose.

 

[Duckies]

“We don’t want people weaned off the e-cigarette,” Schwartz said. “We want them smoking it as long as they smoked regular cigarettes.”

Well while this may be true, may not have been the smartest thing to say. NOW the FDA will say that they are trying to create a new class of addicts.

He didn't have a choice. They drew the line in the sand that these are not intended to be NRT, that they are a "new class of Tobacco", so they have to stick with the story that these aren't designed to assist with quitting.

 

[Vocalek]

When the FDA says "smoking cessation," what they really mean is "nicotine cessation." Simply ceasing to smoke isn’t good enough for them. And when the FDA says "Nicotine Replacement Therapy," what they really mean is "Nicotine Weaning." The FDA-approved NRT products supply levels of nicotine well below what smokers get from smoking tobacco. This is by design. The FDA and misguided health policy-makers are concerned that people will continue using the NRT products after they have stopped smoking. They call this "abuse potential."

The term "addictive" as applied to nicotine is misleading. The public has been brainwashed by the "addictive" label into believing that smokers light up to "get high." Addictive drugs such as alcohol, ......, etc. impair the user's ability to think, reason, and remember. Nicotine does the opposite. Nicotine enhances alertness and the ability to concentrate.

For those who are dependent on it, being DEPRIVED of nicotine can result in cognitive impairment that rivals the impairment seen with alcohol or street-drug use. These impairments are supposed to be temporary. For millions of people, the impairments appear to be permanent.

Electronic cigarettes provide a way for users to obtain the nicotine they require to remain unimpaired. Electronic cigarettes provide this nicotine without subjecting users, as well as the people around them, to the debilitating effects of tobacco smoke.

My concern is that if the FDA is allowed to “regulate” electronic cigarettes as a drug-delivery device, they will do one of two things: Keep them off the market altogether, or reduce the nicotine content to such a low degree that they are as ineffective as the current nicotine-containing products.