HLF’s president testified before the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC), a panel that advises the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) on regulatory matters dealing with safety, dependence, and health issues relating to tobacco products.

The TPSAC meeting was discussing Modified Risk Tobacco Product (MRTP) Applications for certain nicotine pouch products.

The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act defines an MRTP as any tobacco product that is sold or distributed for use to reduce harm or the risk of tobacco-related disease. 

HLF’s testimony as prepared:

Good afternoon.  My name is Mario H. Lopez, and I am president of the Hispanic Leadership Fund—a nonpartisan public policy advocacy organization promoting liberty, opportunity, and prosperity for all Americans. 

I am here today to support authorizing the Modified Risk Tobacco Product application being considered today.

According to the CDC, nearly 500,000 people die every year in the United States due to smoking.  And smoking-related illnesses cost over $300 billion yearly, including medical expenses and lost economic productivity.  But despite massive public campaigns and other large-scale and costly efforts, the reality is that millions of Americans will continue to smoke.

In a physical sense, what smokers are after is simple: nicotine.

Nicotine does not cause disease or death, but it is what keeps people using tobacco products.  The toxic mix of thousands of chemicals contained in tobacco and tobacco smoke makes its use deadly, causing serious health effects, including fatal lung diseases and cancer.

We thus appreciate the FDA’s recognition that health risks for different tobacco products exist on a spectrum.  This is a critical lynchpin for moving more people away from the harms inherent in tobacco combustion.

Modified Risk Tobacco Products (MRTP) are important because of their role in providing harm reduction options for adult smokers who cannot or will not quit nicotine entirely.  MRTP designation shows scientifically evaluated evidence of reduced harm and risk of tobacco-related disease compared to combustible cigarettes.  Such a designation provides consumers with credible, regulated information rather than marketing claims.

Smokers benefit from clear guidance about which alternatives are genuinely less harmful.  MRTP status gives them confidence that switching can reduce health risks, empowering them to make decisions based on science, not speculation.

Adult smokers deserve access to truthful, scientifically backed information about the risks and benefits of all tobacco products.  The MRTP process was specifically designed to address this issue.  Denying the MRTP in question would undermine this process and deprive consumers of a critical tool used to make better choices. 

The public health benefits are simply too great to ignore.  The FDA has an opportunity to continue to acknowledge the realities and science involved in various methods of tobacco consumption and allow consumers to use products that will substantially lower the negative effects to their health.

The Hispanic Leadership Fund respectfully urges the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee to recognize the merits of approving the MRTP application in question.             

Thank you.