Ashley Moody pressures FDA nominee to crack down on Chinese vapes
Senator Ashley Moody pressed FDA Commissioner nominee Heidi Overton to commit to cracking down on illegal Chinese vapes flooding the U.S. market.Summary
During a confirmation hearing for the next FDA Commissioner, U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody questioned nominee Heidi Overton about the prevalence of illegal Chinese vapes, claiming that 85% of the U.S. vape market consists of illicit products illegally smuggled from China and often designed to attract children. Overton committed to making enforcement against illegal products a top priority if confirmed.
The exchange grew tense when Moody probed whether manufacturers could sell products while their approval applications were still pending, with Overton acknowledging that regulations had allowed millions of unvetted products to remain on the market. Moody stressed the need for a faster and more efficient approval process to prevent harmful products from reaching consumers, and Overton committed to addressing the regulation issue.
Moody, who has long prioritized combating youth-targeted vaping products since her tenure as Florida Attorney General, was praised by Florida business leaders—including Scott Shalley of the Florida Retail Federation and Pierce Schuessler of the Florida Petroleum Marketers Association—for continuing to advocate on this issue at the federal level. The hearing also featured Sen. Chris Murphy questioning the timing of former FDA Commissioner Marty Makary's departure amid Trump's push to approve more flavored vapes.
(Source：Florida Politics)
