Confusion remains among those involved in the vaping industry over what manufacturers must do to comply with future regulations laid down by the Food and Drug Administration, industry insiders said.
The FDA earlier this month unveiled a document that it says provides guidance for the pre-marketing of products produced by the vaping industry.
This follows a federal judge in Maryland reprimanding the agency for failing to provide oversight to the industry.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and various other groups filed suit in federal court last year, claiming the lack of oversight has led to a massive increases in vaping among teens.
In court documents, the groups claim that this increase will lead to many of an entire generation addicted to nicotine.
“It is now the FDA's responsibility to take immediate action to protect our kids and require manufacturers to apply to the FDA if they want to keep their products on the market,” the groups said in a statement following the court's ruling.
The FDA then announced guidance for those involve in the e-cigarette business, which had been given until 2012 to continue in the industry before receiving approval.
“There are no authorized e-cigarettes currently on the market,” acting FDA Commissioner Ned Sharpless said in a statement.
Sharpless added that the FDA's oversight of such products “is critical to our public health mission and, especially, to protecting kids from the dangers of nicotine and tobacco-related disease and death.”
However, Alex Clark, chief executive of the Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association (CASAA), said a step by step process was ongoing, but there remains confusion within the industry.
“This is not quite what the industry was asking for,” Clark told Tobacco News Wire.
