We must block Chinese vaping products that endanger our children's health

Flavored vapes targeting children are banned in China, yet that same country is flooding Long Island and the entire American market with those devices. If you’re a concerned parent or grandparent, you’re not alone.

Last October, I was pleased to see the Suffolk County Legislature unanimously passed a bill prohibiting the sale of vape products designed to resemble items like school supplies. The news followed my work with both the Trump and Biden administrations to outlaw certain fruit- and mint-flavored vapes aimed at kids. We won a victory for millions of America’s young people over purveyors like Juul that marketed their deadly products directly to children. But three years later, imports from China are threatening to undo our progress.

Unfortunately, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been slow to respond to this new assault on our children’s health. This past year, 10% of high-schoolers and 4.6% of middle-schoolers, or 2.1 million young people overall, used e-cigarettes, according to the Centers for Disease Control Foundation. Even more alarming, more than 5,800 types of disposable vaping products have been sold in child-friendly flavors as of June 2023, a 1,500% increase from 2020.

In light of this renewed threat, the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party recently called on the Department of Justice and the FDA to crack down on e-cigarettes and related accessories imported from China, which currently provides more than half of all vaping products sold in the U.S.

These Chinese imports contain nicotine levels equivalent to several cartons of cigarettes. Many brands claim to give users thousands of puffs in a single device, resulting in higher cumulative nicotine intake compared to traditional cigarettes. One brightly colored, fruit-flavored vaping product from China is designed as a youth-friendly highlighter for easy concealment. The product reportedly delivers up to 50 milligrams of nicotine, equivalent to the content of 50 cigarettes in a single device. It is an insidious way to expedite nicotine addiction in young people, whose brains and nervous systems are still forming.

Although federal law prohibits manufacturers from introducing new products in the U.S. without going through a premarket authorization process, an estimated 90% of illicit vaping products from China currently avoid that process. The manufacturers avoid detection and seizure by changing product names while maintaining the same QR codes, among other shifty tactics.

Since our committee sent its letter, the FDA, in collaboration with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, seized approximately 1.4 million units of unauthorized e-cigarette products worth more than $18 million. But this is just a drop in the bucket.

The FDA is more than two years behind a court-ordered deadline to complete its review of premarket tobacco product applications from e-cigarette manufacturers. Recent court filings show the agency may not meet its most recent estimate to complete its review of those products with the largest market share by the end of this year.

We committee members believe it is essential that the FDA completes these reviews without delay. We have further requested that both the FDA and DOJ initiate civil and criminal proceedings — including injunctions, monetary penalties, and prosecution — against manufacturers who violate laws preventing the importation of illegal vaping products.

If our committee cannot protect our nation’s children from this threat to their health and safety, our work to improve America’s future standing versus our greatest adversary will be incomplete.

This guest essay reflects the views of Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), the ranking member of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party.