In Appropriations Hearing, Durbin Calls Out Secretary Kennedy For FDA’s Failure To Crack Down On Illegal E-Cigarettes, Vape Products

In Appropriations Hearing, Durbin Calls Out Secretary Kennedy For FDA's Failure To Crack Down On Illegal E-Cigarettes, Vape Products

In today's Appropriations Committee hearing on the President's FY27 budget request, Durbin calls on Secretary Kennedy to regulate e-cigarette products

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today questioned Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., during a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies' hearing about the President's Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) budget request for HHS. During the hearing, Durbin called on Secretary Kennedy to crack down on illegal e-cigarette products, especially those targeting children.

Durbin began his questioning by speaking about the impact that tobacco has had on his own family. At just 14 years old, Durbin lost his father to lung cancer. Durbin took on Big Tobacco in the House of Representatives and led the charge to ban smoking on airplanes, which eventually led to bans in restaurants, office buildings, trains, and much more. Durbin continues to fight against Big Tobacco as it pushes e-cigarette and vaping products to children.

"My father, who was 53 years old, died of lung cancer. [He smoked] Two packs of Camels a day. It changed my life, as I'm sure your father's loss changed yours," Durbin said to Secretary Kennedy.

"I have taken tobacco pretty seriously as a member of Congress now for 44 years. One thing that I did that seemed small at the time was ban smoking on airplanes. Once we raised the question of the danger of secondhand smoke on the airplanes, Americans asked the obvious question: 'What about a train or a bus or an office building or a hospital or a restaurant?' We have seen dramatic reductions in tobacco addiction," Durbin said. "Still, the reason for moving forward on that was not just to make the situation more pleasant on an airplane but also to protect children who were smoking and using tobacco products at school. That number is down dramatically."

"We are told by experts that if we want to save more lives in America, we need to do more to stop smoking, to have less people smoking than we do today. Your report on the state of health in America, I looked through it, and it never mentioned the words 'tobacco' or 'cigarette.' I think it's a priority, and I hope that you will reconsider. I hope you'll also consider what the tobacco companies have done to this new generation of children," Durbin said.

Durbin then pressed Secretary Kennedy about the President's budget request, which proposes the elimination of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Office of Smoking and Health. Durbin further questioned Secretary Kennedy about the decision behind the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) authorization of JUUL Labs, allowing the company to keep selling its e-cigarettes on the U.S. market despite a 2022 federal denial and JUUL's shameful history of deceiving and harming children to make a profit.

"Your FDA just approved the e-cigarette responsible for igniting this youth vaping epidemic, JUUL, and announced plans to permit Big Tobacco to sell more kid-friendly flavors. This FY27 budget request would also eliminate the CDC's Office of Smoking and Health. This $246 million program helps adults to quit smoking and makes sure that kids have fewer chances of ever smoking themselves," Durbin said.

"You tell us this is the sickest generation of children we've had. How can vaping make them any healthier?" Durbin asked Secretary Kennedy.

Reiterating a Big Tobacco talking point, Secretary Kennedy replied that the agency made the determination based on the argument that vaping products would reduce cigarette and tobacco use, without acknowledging that these products are primarily used by children who do not smoke combustible cigarettes.

Durbin concluded by urging Secretary Kennedy not to trust Big Tobacco, and instead, to prioritize the health and wellbeing of Americans by exercising the full authority of the Tobacco Control Act.

"I want smokers to quit too. If there was something that could've saved my father's life, I would've supported it. But I learned a long time ago that you can't trust Big Tobacco's promises. In the meantime, we can't risk a new wave of children addicted to this poison. The law is crystal clear. The Tobacco Control Act requires an e-cigarette manufacturer to first prove to the FDA that its product is 'appropriate for the protection of public health' before he can go into market," Durbin said.

"You are an attorney. This is a condition precedent. The law has no special treatment for American vapes or Chinese vapes. If you are serious about protecting our kids, I hope that you'll reconsider any decision which allows the expansion of e-cigarettes," Durbin concluded his remarks.

Video of Durbin's questions in Committee is available here.

Audio of Durbin's questions in Committee is available here.

Footage of Durbin's question in Committee is available herefor TV stations.

Earlier this month, Durbin released a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report examining FDA and the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) interagency enforcement activities related to the sale of unauthorized e-cigarettes. This new GAO report, which is entitled "Combating Illicit Substances: DOJ Enforcement of Unauthorized E-Cigarettes," confirms that thousands of kid-friendly flavored e-cigarettes are being illegally sold while FDA and DOJ, which established a multi-agency task force to combat the sale of illicit vaping products, have largely failed to take significant enforcement action against the illegal products. The GAO report reveals new findings about the limited enforcement action taken, lack of coordination, and diversion of DOJ resources away from tobacco enforcement to unrelated immigration priorities of the Trump Administration.

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