Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has joined a multistate coalition urging the Biden administration to move forward on its ban of menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars.
Mayes and attorneys general from across the country wrote in a letter that such a restriction is “long overdue.”
The Food and Drug Administration first introduced its' rules to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars in April 2022, intending to prevent children from becoming the next generation of smokers and helping adult smokers quit.
However, the proposed ban was delayed when the White House continued the review until at least March.
Mayes notes in a statement that a prohibition could prevent hundreds and thousands of deaths of Black Americans who are aggressively marketed menthol cigarettes.
Menthol cigarette use is also disproportionately high among LGBTQ+ smokers, smokers with mental health problems and socioeconomically disadvantaged populations.
The letter also aims to persuade Biden that a ban would not cause a rise in illicit sales of menthol products, nor would it criminalize those with purchase them.