E-cigarette makers face an existential threat. By May, they must submit applications to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, proving that their products provide a net benefit to public health. If a company fails to make its case, the FDA has the power to order its products off the market.
The agency will judge that benefit with a two-part test: Are e-cigarettes effective in getting smokers to quit? And, if so, does that benefit outweigh the health damage to new e-cigarette users—including teenagers—who never smoked in the first place?
