President Donald Trump says his administration will propose banning thousands of flavors used in e-cigarettes amid an outbreak of breathing problems tied to vaping.
State and federal health authorities are investigating hundreds of breathing illnesses reported in people who have used e-cigarettes and other vaping devices.
No single device, ingredient or additive has been identified.
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar says the Food and Drug Administration will develop guidelines to remove all e-cigarette flavors from the market, especially those favored by children.
Azar said his guidance would have flavored e-cigarettes removed from the market and would require manufacturers of "tobacco-flavored" e-cigarettes to file for approval with the FDA by May 2020. Flavored vape manufacturers would also be able to file for approval but must remain off the market until then.
The FDA regulates e-cigarettes and has authority to ban vaping flavors, but has resisted calls to take that step.
Instead, the agency has said it is studying the role of flavors in vaping products, including whether they help adult smokers quit traditional cigarettes.
"We may very well have to do something very, very strong about it," the president told reporters. "We can't allow people to get sick," he said. "People are dying."
I am deeply concerned about the growing epidemic of e-cigarette use in our children. We need to do all we can to protect the public from tobacco-related disease and death, and prevent e-cigarettes from becoming an on-ramp to nicotine addiction for a generation of youth. @HHSGov
— Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) September 9, 2019
Desert Research Institute scientists are also studying effects of e-cigarettes.
Meanwhile, a regional health authority is reporting the Las Vegas area's first confirmed case of severe respiratory illness linked to e-cigarette products in a person under age 18.
The Southern Nevada Health District says the youth was hospitalized with respiratory symptoms that met the case definition established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, the district says a pulmonary infection has not been identified.
Dr. Joe Iser, the district's chief health officer, says the case involving a young person who shouldn't have access to vaping products is "an unfortunate reminder" of how pervasive vaping items have become.
The district says it is not releasing any additional information about the youth, who has been released from the hospital and is recovering.
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.@SecAzar on President @realDonaldTrump's e-cigarette announcement: pic.twitter.com/HYp8l4KCUW
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 11, 2019
