By the time you're done reading this column, combustible tobacco smoking will claim four more American lives -- and a total of 440,000 lives this year.
Electronic cigarettes -- battery-operated products that deliver an inhalable nicotine vapor -- offer a much needed alternative.
Since 2007, nearly 1 million committed smokers have tried electronic cigarettes, known widely as e-cigarettes, to make the transition to a vapor alternative, while preserving their personal pleasure. E-cigarettes are attractive to committed smokers because smokers can use them in locations where smoking is inconvenient or prohibited. And because these products only emit a nearly odorless vapor, they are more publicly acceptable to non-smokers.
Now, committed smokers and e-cigarette manufacturers are under attack. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has threatened to take action against e-cigarettes that would, in essence, take the product off the market, denying committed smokers the freedom to choose a science-backed and better alternative to combustible tobacco.
Electronic cigarettes are not drugs, nor are they sold to cure any disease or affliction. Therefore, the FDA has no authority to regulate or ban them as drug-delivery devices.
But by attempting to mislabel them as medical devices, the FDA wants to force manufacturers to spend as much as $1.5 billion on clinical research, drug trials and FDA fees for potential marketplace approval. We are not large drug companies capable of this type of investment, and the FDA knows it.
President Obama just signed a landmark law giving the FDA authority to regulate virtually all aspects of tobacco products. We understand that to protect the public, some form of regulation may be necessary and would welcome regulation under the new and more reasonable authority. This process wouldn't take us off the shelf or cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and would still provide necessary safeguards. Our goal is to guarantee access for committed smokers who want the freedom of the clear alternative that e-cigarettes offer and ensure that minors do not have access to our products.
Matt Salmon, a former Republican congressman from Arizona, is president of the Electronic Cigarette Association.
To see more of USAToday.com, or to subscribe, go to http://www.usatoday.com
Copyright 2009 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.