Congress should protect our kids from tobacco industry

As a tobacco-control advocate, I’m proud Mississippi has more than 116 smoke-free communities. However, I’m worried our progress could be threatened by tobacco companies that are targeting our kids with e-cigarettes and cigars in sweet and candy flavors like gummy bear, cheese cake, peanut butter cup and banana smash.

The tobacco industry’s tricks are working. Twenty-three percent of Mississippi high school students use e-cigarettes compared with 15 percent who smoke regular cigarettes. And nearly 17 percent of high school students smoke cigars.

Congress should be doing all it can to protect kids from these outrageously flavored products. But some in Congress have actually introduced legislation that would weaken the Food and Drug Administration rules for e-cigarettes and cigars and make it easier for tobacco companies to keep targeting kids. They’re trying to attach these proposals to a must-pass appropriations bill.

Sen. Thad Cochran, as chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, is in a crucial position to reject these harmful efforts to help the tobacco industry. I urge Sen. Cochran to support strong FDA rules to protect kids from the candy- and fruit-flavored tobacco products on the market. By doing so, he can protect kids, save lives and ultimately help make the next generation tobacco-free.

This story was originally published April 30, 2017 at 4:45 AM with the headline "Congress should protect our kids from tobacco industry."