The Department of Health and Human Services previously stated that the ban on menthol cigarettes would be a "critical" piece of President Biden's Cancer Moonshot initiative. (Getty Images)
FDA ultimately handed the regulations off to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for final approval months ago after a lengthy public comment period. However, officials dragged their feet in moving forward with the regulations and missed multiple self-imposed deadlines to finalize them, igniting concerns among health advocates that the administration may change course.
"Unfortunately, the possibility of this administration making these rules a reality is shrinking with the passage of time, and ACS CAN is calling on the administration to not miss the opportunity to make a historic gain in the fight against cancer," American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network CEO Karen Knudsen said in a statement on Friday ahead of Becerra's announcement.
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OMB declined to comment and referred Fox News Digital back to Becerra's statement.
And an FDA spokesperson said the agency remains committed to issuing tobacco product standards for menthol in cigarettes and characterizing flavors in cigars.
"As we’ve made clear, these product standards remain at the top of our priorities," the spokesperson said.
Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network emerged as a leading opponent of the Biden administration's menthol cigarette ban. (Erika Goldring/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
"The USHBC applauds President Biden for his leadership in delaying the menthol ban, recognizing the unintended consequences it would have had on convenience store sales nationwide and the livelihoods of over 600,000 workers," Javier Palomarez, the president and CEO of the U.S. Hispanic Business Council, told Fox News Digital in a statement.
"Implementing a ban would have not only been ineffective but would also risk disproportionately criminalizing people of color, the very communities where menthol cigarettes are consumed," Palomarez added. "We are delighted that the President has heard our concerns and we offer ourselves up as a resource to develop a comprehensive approach to public health."
According to NACS, the rule would have led to a reduction of $72,285 a year in non-tobacco sundry sales and $160,107 a year in tobacco product sales for the typical convenience store nationwide. The organization projected that the convenience store industry could have collectively lost $2.16 billion in sales as a result of the regulations.
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In addition, government watchdog group Protect the Public's Trust (PPT) said the administration's actions Friday confirmed its concerns it expressed last week when it sued HHS for withholding documents related to the regulations.
"This announcement appears to confirm the basis for our lawsuit a few weeks ago on the proposed menthol cigarette ban. Public health authorities following the polling rather than the science is not a good look. It's also a major reason why trust in our public health officials is at an all-time low," PPT Director Michael Chamberlain said. "This only heightens the need for transparency into what's really driving decisions at the FDA."
Thomas Catenacci is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-admin-abruptly-delays-plan-ban-menthol-cigarettes-amid-widespread-opposition