Jan 22, 2020 - Health

Congress wants vaping industry to pay for FDA oversight

A bipartisan group of senators wants the vaping industry to pay for more of the Food and Drug Administration's oversight of vaping products.

Driving the news: Six senators, led by Democrat Jeanne Shaheen, will introduce a bill today to charge e-cigarette manufacturers higher user fees, which fund many of the FDA's regulatory activities. A corresponding bill led by Rep. Cheri Bustos will be introduced in the House soon.

Why it matters: The FDA's Center for Tobacco Products has spent a lot of time and money on the vaping industry, but the fees that fund that activity are more geared toward cigarette, cigar and smokeless tobacco manufacturers.

  • The bill would up the tobacco industry's fees from $712 million to $812 million — the same increase the Trump administration's 2020 budget proposed. E-cigarette makers would have to pay fees based on their market share, or risk fines or even a ban.

Go deeper: Trump told Azar he regrets involvement in vaping policy

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Ursula Perano
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New York City schools will not fully reopen in fall

Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced at a press conference on Wednesday that schools will not fully reopen in fall, and will instead adopt a hybrid model that will limit in-person attendance to just one to three days a week.

Why it matters: New York City, once the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the United States, is home to the nation's largest public school district — totaling 1,800 schools and 1.1 million students, according to the New York Times. The partial reopening plan could prevent hundreds of thousands of parents from fully returning to work.

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Dan Primack
36 mins ago - Economy & Business

Treasury blames lenders for PPP disclosure debacle

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

The U.S. Treasury Department is pointing the finger at lenders for errors discovered in Monday's PPP data disclosure.

What they're saying: "Companies listed had their PPP applications entered into SBA’s Electronic Transmission (ETran) system by an approved PPP lender. If a lender did not cancel the loan in the ETran system, the loan is listed," a senior administration official said.

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Axios
Updated 45 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 10:30 a.m. ET: 11,863,477 — Total deaths: 544,949 — Total recoveries — 6,483,402 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 10:30 a.m. ET: 2,996,679 — Total deaths: 131,486 — Total recoveries: 936,476 — Total tested: 36,878,106 — Map.
  3. Public health: Deaths are rising in hotspots — Déjà vu sets in as testing issues rise and PPE dwindles.
  4. Travel: How the pandemic changed mobility habits, by state.
  5. Education: Harvard and MIT sue Trump administration over rule barring foreign students from online classes.
  6. 🎧 Podcast: A misinformation "infodemic" is here.
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