The question is ‘What kind of regulation?’

Some opponents of electronic cigarettes have stated they believe those who manufacturer and sell electronic cigarettes are trying to skirt regulation by the FDA. They ask “why don’t they just go through the normal NRT process like the nicotine gum or patch?”. I will answer these questions from the perspective of one company who sells electronic cigarettes.

We are NOT opposed to regulation. In fact one of the reasons we helped form the Electronic Cigarette Association is because we believe there does need to be a certain level of regulation. This includes, among other things, how it is manufactured, how it can be marketed, proper warnings, and most certainly keeping it out of the hands of minors. Some of these regulations are easy to implement and others will take time and help from an agency such as the FDA.

We ARE opposed to becoming an NRT. We strongly believe that the electronic cigarette should be allowed to freely compete with tobacco cigarettes on the open market. As an NRT, a product must be sold in pharmacies either with or without a prescription. NRTs are often more expensive than tobacco cigarettes. NRTs come with a stop usage date…..hence the claims of “quit smoking” which is really “quit using nicotine”. Placing these restrictions on electronic cigarettes create an unfair advantage for those who sell tobacco cigarettes.

I suppose the question is; if adults can legally choose to smoke tobacco cigarettes for as long as they like, why can’t they legally choose to use electronic cigarettes for as long as they like? For those who want to make claims such as “the electronic cigarette helps you quit smoking”, then they should do the proper clinical trials to prove that, submit it to the FDA, and then go sell it in pharmacies as a quit smoking product.

We applaud Matt Salmon, President of the ECA, in this Reuters article when he said, “We understand that to protect the public, some form of regulation may be necessary, and we welcome that. Our goal, nevertheless, is to ensure committed adult smokers the freedom of a clear, better alternative and to prohibit sales to minors”.

Governor Schwarzenegger Protects Adult Consumers’ Access to E-Cigarettes

Industry hails veto of anti-smoking alternative bill as victory for consumers, common sense

Washington, D.C. – October 12, 2009 | Matt Salmon, president of the Electronic Cigarette Association (ECA), today praised California Governor Schwarzenegger’s wise decision to veto Senate Bill 400, which would have banned electronic cigarette sales in the state, protecting adult consumers’ access to these alternative smoking devices.

“This is not just a victory for consumers and common sense but is smart public policy as well,” said Salmon. “Rejecting this bill is the right step and should serve as a model for other states to follow.”

In his veto message, Governor Schwarzenegger reiterated the stance of the ECA that strongly supports restricting access of electronic cigarettes to children under the age of 18. “We agree with the original intent of SB 400 to ban sales to those under the legal smoking age. And we support that on a national level as well,” added Salmon.

The Governor affirmed that this restriction should not apply to adult consumers: “If adults want to purchase and consume these products with an understanding of the associated health risks, they should be able to do so unless and until federal law changes the legal status of these tobacco products.”

The ECA actively communicated to the Governor its members’ concerns about the bill and the fact that banning these electronic cigarettes would disenfranchise thousands of California adult smokers who have difficulty quitting but want an alternative to combustible cigarettes without the host of carcinogens and harmful chemicals. Salmon credited this legislative victory to the efforts of thousands of consumers and ECA members who appealed directly to Governor Schwarzenegger to protect their rights.

“While we know that combustible tobacco smoking kills over 400,000 Americans annually, and the percentage of smokers that quit every year is dismally low, we ought to be looking for more alternatives to traditional combustible tobacco products,” said Salmon.

Electronic cigarette kits usually include the electronic cigarette, a replaceable cartridge pack (that may or may not contain nicotine), rechargeable lithium batteries, and a charger. There is some variation between different companies in what is included in their starter kit, but all components are listed on their Web sites. While ECA members do not market these devices as a healthy alternative or smoking cessation device, it is clear that they do not contain the harmful tars and hundreds of carcinogens that consumers get from combustible tobacco products.

“We look forward to working with all government agencies, including the FDA, to ensure that consumers who want an alternative to combustible tobacco products have access to e-cigarettes that contain fewer harmful substances and produce no secondhand smoke,” concluded Salmon.

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About the Electronic Cigarette Association

The ECA (www.ecassoc.org) is an association of private sector companies engaged in electronic cigarette technologies. Its mission is to provide the tools and information necessary for policy-makers, opinion leaders, media, and private sector companies worldwide to make informed decisions about the management and use of electronic cigarette technologies. The association institutes and promotes industry-wide standards and a code of conduct, works to maintain sound professional practices, educates the public and policy-makers on the industry’s activities and potential, and works to ensure the ethical use of electronic cigarette technologies.

Matt Salmon, President of the Electronic Cigarette Association (ECA), today denounced a quotation attributed to him by Epiphany Media Group in a press release dated September 14, 2009. The falsely attributed quotation conveys the mistaken impression that some e-cigarette products have been approved by the FDA for consumer use. Salmon underscored the ECA’s commitment to abide by FDA regulations.

“It has come to my attention that a press release with false and misleading claims about e-cigarettes attributed to me was distributed without my knowledge or approval. I want to make it unequivocally clear that I have never made such statements or claims and they are patently false,” said Salmon.

The erroneous quotation, re-released on October 8, 2009, reads, “It is disheartening that the FDA issued a warning to the public against electronic cigarettes without conclusive data to support the claim.” The release goes onto say that Salmon indicated that “some of the companies that are part of the ECA such as inLife electronic cigarette product lines are approved by the FDA.”

“I don’t know of any electronic cigarette suppliers or manufacturers that have been approved by the FDA,” added Salmon. “All of our members send a warning card with every unit sold stating clearly that the product has not been approved by the FDA.”

The ECA’s policy is that member companies cannot make any health claims about their products or represent them as smoking cessation devices. E-cigarettes sold by these companies are marketed as simply an alternative to combustible tobacco smoking. Additionally, all members must ensure that they have taken precautions to prevent people under the legal smoking age from having access to their products.

“This requirement has been a long-standing policy of the ECA since its inception and we will take the necessary steps to enforce it,” Salmon concluded.

Visit www.ecassoc.org for more information about the ECA and its member companies.

1) FDA smoke screen on e-cigarettes in Washington Times by Dr. Elizabeth Whelan, president of the American Council on Science and Health

2) American Association of Public Health Physicians writes on behalf of Electronic Cigarettes to the Incoming Director of the FDA by Joel L. Nitzkin, MD, MPH, DPA
Chair, AAPHP Tobacco Control Task Force and Kevin Sherin, MD, MPH, FACPM, FAAFP
President, American Association of Public Health Physicians

3) Disingenuousness of the FDA’s Press Conference is Concerning; FDA and Anti-Smoking Groups are Committing Medical Malpractice on a Massive Scale by Dr. Michael Siegel, Professor at the Boston University School of Public Health

4) FDA’s drug and e-cigarette warnings counterproductive by Jeff Stier, associate director, American Council on Science and Health

5) Technical Review and Analysis of FDA Report: “Evaluation of e-cigarettes” by Janci Chunn Lindsay, Ph.D. from Exponent Health Sciences

6) An Interview With David Sweanor on the E-Cigarette, Tobacco harm reduction, snus and other issues from E Cigarette Direct out of the UK

7) The FDA Crusade Against E-Cigarettes by Brad Rodu, Professor of Medicine at the University of Louisville, holds an endowed chair in tobacco harm reduction research, and a member of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at U of L

8) Prominent Public Health Physicians and Tobacco Researchers Expose Double Standard in the FDA’s Recent Study of Electronic Cigarettes and Challenge the FDA’s Alarmist Attitude Toward the Devices by Dr. Michael Siegel, Professor at the Boston University School of Public Health and Joel L. Nitzkin, MD, MPH, DPA, Chair AAPHP Tobacco Control Task Force and Brad Rodu, Professor of Medicine at the University of Louisville

9) Electronic Cigarette Association Letter To Congress by Matt Salmom, former Congressmen and President of the ECA

10) American Lung Association Asserts that E-Cigarettes are Designed to Promote Cigarette Smoking; Can Anti-Smoking Groups’ Reasoning Get Any More Absurd? by Dr. Michael Siegel, Professor at the Boston University School of Public Health

The articles above do not necessarily represent Instead’s position or opinion and no opinions within these articles should be taken as claims to the health, safety, or use of the electronic cigarette. As we have stated many times in the past, the most healthy thing to do is to quit smoking, period. The electronic cigarette is an alternative for long time smokers who have not been able to quit. It is not healthy or safe, but simply an alternative to smoking tobacco cigarettes.

Matt Salmon, former Congressmen and current President of The Electronic Cigarette Association responds to the FDA’s announcement regarding electronic cigarettes:

The Electronic Cigarette Association (ECA) is a 501(c)(6), which is a not-for-profit trade association. This allows us to collect donations (not tax deductible as a charitable contribution) but still lobby the government to recognize our agenda.

We have elected the board members and officers (Matt Salmon – President, Jack Leadbeater – Chair, James Watt – Vice Chair, Chad Green – Treasurer, Antoinette Lanza, Nick Bird, and Rob Winslow) and are just completing the official member application. The application will be circulated once complete.

The ECA has minimum membership dues for suppliers and manufacturers of a one time application fee of $500 USD and a monthly fee of $300 USD. Many companies are paying much more than the minimums. These funds, along with any donations received, will be used for these purposes:

1) Engaging Policy Impact Communications (www.policyimpact.com) to lobby Congress. Our lobbying efforts include proposing amendments to the Tobacco Bill (which continues to change names, but was first introduced by Waxman and now a new one is being introduced by Kennedy). The amendment proposed is designed to help protect the electronic cigarette from being pulled off the market.

2) Engaging Policy Impact Communications to perform the administrative duties necessary to keep the ECA in good standing with the IRS and other government agencies.

3) Engaging a media relations firm to battle misinformation being presented by e-cigarette opponents and to expand the reach of electronic cigarettes so all smokers have the freedom to choose an alternative.

4) Implement standards to ensure e-cigarette suppliers and distributors meet certain requirements.

5) Implement standards to ensure our products meet certain requirements. This process is time and resource intensive, but is necessary to ensure the future of our industry. Third party agencies will need to be hired to physically visit electronic cigarette and eliquid manufacturing plants worldwide to verify the standards the ECA has set out.

No board members are taking a salary from the ECA, although Matt Salmon is employed by Policy Impact Communications. No one ECA member will directly benefit more than any other member. This is about saving our industry, not one company.

What do companies get for becoming an ECA member? They will hopefully get to keep their business. What do consumers get for donating their money and time? They will hopefully get to keep legally buying and using electronic cigarettes. This is all hopeful, but possible if we band together.

Our goals are lofty. We have a product that is an alternative to tobacco (Big Tobacco) and an alternative to smoking cessation products (Big Pharm). These industries have almost limitless reach within Congress and in some cases within the Public Health community. However the electronic cigarette is a good product that provides an alternative to a known killer and is worth fighting for.

If you believe the e-cigarette should be pulled off the market, subjected to 2+ years of clinical trials at a cost in the millions, then eventually be sold in pharmacies as a quit smoking product for something well above current retail prices, then just go about your business.

If you believe the e-cigarette should be an accessible product to legal age smokers at a reasonable price and be held to specific standards, then I highly recommend you donate to the ECA. We will need it. Please visit www.ecassoc.org/donate/

Thank you for your support.

James Watt
ECA Vice Chair

We are proud to announce the nomination of the Electronic Cigarette Association’s new President, Matt Salmon. Matt Salmon is a former member of the US House of Representatives from Arizona (1995-2001). Today he is the president of the Electronic Cigarette Association (ECA), following on a path of life’s work in the public health arena that has included pushing through a law in the state of Arizona that was among the first public smoking bans, and later in 2000, being named Congressman of the Year by the American Cancer Society.

For more information about Matt, please visit Matt Salmon’s Bio Page.

Message From The Electronic Cigarette Association President