The Wall Street Journal

Biden administration could require tobacco companies to reduce nicotine in cigarettes

Published: April 19, 2021 at 4:03 p.m. ET

By

Jennifer Maloney

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Policy could be paired with proposal to ban menthols; FDA must decide whether to pursue menthol ban by April 29

The nicotine-reduction proposal under discussion would aim to push millions of U.S. smokers to quit or switch to less harmful alternatives.

Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images

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The Biden administration is considering requiring tobacco companies to reduce the nicotine levels in all cigarettes sold in the U.S. to levels at which they are no longer addictive, according to people familiar with the matter.

Administration officials are considering the policy as they approach a deadline for declaring the administration’s intentions on another tobacco question: whether or not to ban menthol cigarettes.

The Food and Drug Administration must respond in court by April 29 to a citizens’ petition to ban menthols by disclosing whether the agency intends to pursue such a policy. The Biden administration is now weighing whether to move forward on a menthol ban or a nicotine reduction in all cigarettes—or both, the people familiar with the matter said.

The White House and the FDA didn’t immediately comment Monday.

An expanded version of this article appears on WSJ.com.

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