On March 27, 2018, a coalition of public health organizations including the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, the Truth Initiative, the American Cancer Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics, among others, as well as several individual physicians (collectively the “NGOs”) filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland challenging
FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb’s Recent Remarks on Vapor Products and the Continuum of Risk; Update on Deeming Rule Appeal
On June 18, 2018, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb delivered remarks on “FDA’s Nicotine and Tobacco Regulation and the Key Role of Regulatory Science” at the Tobacco Regulatory Science Program Meeting.[1] While addressing the importance of regulatory science to inform FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) regulatory efforts, Commissioner…
Tobacco Product Listing Update Due by June 30, 2018 for U.S. Manufacturing Establishments
Tobacco product manufacturing establishments in the United States must register with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) immediately upon beginning manufacturing operations (e.g., the manufacture, preparation, compounding, or processing of a tobacco product). As part of the registration process, establishment operators must submit a detailed list of products manufactured at the establishment, along…
FDA and Supporting Amici File Briefs in Deeming Rule Appeal; Vapor Industry Responds
On May 2, 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) filed its brief in response to Appellants Nicopure and Right to be Smoke-Free Coalition’s appeal in the lawsuit challenging aspects of the Tobacco Control Act (TCA) and the Deeming Rule now pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. FDA’s brief…
FDA and FTC Issue 13 Warning Letters to E-liquid Companies for Misleadingly Marketing to Youth; FDA Investigates Underage Use of JUUL Devices
On May 1, 2018 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued 13 warning letters to companies that they claim misleadingly labeled or advertised nicotine-containing e-liquids as kid-friendly food products such as juice boxes, candies, and cookies. Warning letters were issued to manufacturers, distributors, and retailers of eight products.
All…
FDA Inspection Proposal Provides Valuable Insight Into Scope of Investigations; Register for Upcoming SFATA Webinar on May 2, 2018
At yesterday’s meeting with the U.S. House Subcommittee on Agriculture and Rural Development to discuss FDA’s Fiscal Year 2019 budget, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb discussed the Agency’s regulation of the tobacco industry and noted, among other things, that when all the requirements for the newly deemed products, including vapor products, went…
FDA Issues Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemakings Regarding Premium Cigars and Tobacco Product Flavors

In FDA’s latest effort to implement its comprehensive plan for tobacco and nicotine regulation, the Agency published two additional advanced notice of proposed rulemakings (ANPRMs) concerning regulation of premium cigars and tobacco product flavors. Specifically, on March 21, 2018, the FDA published an ANPRM, “Regulation of Flavors in Tobacco Products,” which solicited comments on, among…
FDA Issues Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Potentially Lowering Nicotine Levels in Combustible Cigarettes to Minimally or Non-Addictive Levels
In the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) latest effort to implement its comprehensive regulatory plan[1] to shift the trajectory of tobacco-related disease and death, the Agency issued, on March 15, 2018, an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) to obtain information for consideration in developing a tobacco product standard to set a…
Keller and Heckman LLP Launches Audit and Inspection Program for Vapor and Tobacco Product Manufacturing Establishments
February 26, 2018 – Keller and Heckman LLP is pleased to announce the introduction of its Audit and Inspection Program (AIP) for Tobacco and Vapor Product Manufacturing Establishments.
The AIP was developed in response to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) inspection authority under the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA or the Act), as…
Amicus Briefs Filed in Support of Deeming Rule Appeal by Washington Legal Foundation, NJOY, CASAA, the State of Iowa and Clive Bates, et al.
On February 20, 2018 several organizations filed amicus (“friend of the court”) briefs in support of Plaintiff-Appellants Nicopure Labs’ and the Right to be Smoke-Free Coalition’s appeal in the Deeming Rule challenge now pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
The Washington Legal Foundation (WLF) is a nonprofit, public-interest law firm…