Archives: Seminars

The FDA’s legal choices and the federal court’s response

This session will focus on the FDA’s struggles with the PMTA review process.  Those struggles were first seen with the Agency’s initial scheduling of the PMTA deadline – with a federal court ultimately requiring the Agency to pull the deadline forward by two years.  They have continued with FDA’s review decisions, where the Agency has chosen to… Read more »

Modern Nicotine and Tobacco Policy: Where is the Public Health Frontier?

Over the past decade, governments worldwide have introduced an array of policies to reduce the health burden of tobacco and nicotine use. Typically targeting product characteristics, prices, or access, these regulations range from taxes to limits on nicotine concentration, to packaging requirements and marketing restrictions, to prohibitions on flavors or even complete sales prohibitions for… Read more »

Taming the Nicotine Industrial Complex – Tobacco Control 2.0

“Insight must precede application”, said great German physicist Max Planck. The first challenge of exerting control over the market for nicotine is to understand it. That means understanding the complex adaptive system of the demand and supply for nicotine before attempting to regulate it. Is it possible that modern technologies and commerce are beginning to… Read more »

Recent trends in US nicotine delivery product markets

While US cigarette use among youth and young adults has plummeted, cigarette use has stayed relatively constant among older adults. At the same time, e-cigarette use continues to grow in the US, with much of the growth in disposables, such as Elfbar. Oral nicotine pouch use has also increased, and heated tobacco products are poised… Read more »

Cannabis and public health: informing a future role of nicotine in society

In this presentation, Prof Benowitz will consider the commonalities and differences between cannabis and nicotine use including safety and health impacts and the implications for potential societal acceptance. The use of cannabis products has become normalized in the U.S. over the past 75 years, including the legalization of recreational cannabis use in many states and… Read more »

A Personal Take on the Harm Reduction Debate

Mitch Zeller, J.D., was the director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products from March 2013 through April 2022. The mission of CTP—established by enactment of the 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act—is “to make tobacco-related death and disease part of America’s past, not America’s future, and, by doing so, ensure a healthier… Read more »

What is the UK’s policy on smoking and vaping in 2024

In February 2024 the UK government tabled legislation to create a smoke-free generation and tackle youth vaping. With the support of the Prime Minister and the Official Opposition, the legislation is expected to pass into law before the next general election. It is not expected to change significantly during the passage of the Bill. The… Read more »

Pathways to Smokefree New Zealand and Australia

New Zealand and Australia both have a goal to reduce adult smoking to under 5%. New Zealand by 2025, Australia by 2030. Other than vaping laws, the two countries also have almost identical tobacco control policies. New Zealand has some of the most liberal vaping laws in the world with products widely available. Australia, by… Read more »