FDA to consider limiting e-cigarette sales to vape shops to curb youth use

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/19/as-youth-e-cigarette-use-surges-fda-may-stop-convenience-store-sales.html

Regulators are considering prohibiting some e-cigarette sales in convenience stores and confining them to vape shops, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb told CNBC on Friday.

High school e-cigarette use surged 77 percent last year, Gottlieb said in an interview on "Squawk Box," citing preliminary figures from the federal Youth Tobacco Survey. Middle school use skyrocketed about 50 percent last year, he said. Gottlieb has called these levels "epidemic."

Many teens are illegally buying e-cigarettes, including the most popular one, Juul, in convenience stores, Gottlieb said. To confront the issue, he said, regulators could limit sales of flavored e-cigarette products to vape shops.

Retailers who were caught include national convenience stores and gas stations like 7-Eleven, Circle K, Shell and Mobil, according to an FDA database.