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As the Biden administration mulls a politically sensitive decision on whether to ban menthol cigarettes, another corner of the tobacco industry — cigar makers — is fighting to be left alone. The fate of a proposed ban on flavored cigars has been linked to a separate and closely scrutinized proposal to outlaw menthol cigarettes that's been under White House review for months. (Reed, 2/13)

Researchers at Rutgers University have received more than $7 million to study disinformation and marketing around a proposed federal ban on menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars — with a particular focus on how such information affects Black and Hispanic smokers. Kymberle Sterling, the associate director for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion at the Rutgers Institute for Nicotine and Tobacco Studies, will lead two studies funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. (Whelan, 2/12)

Smoking in cars with children is banned in 11 states, and lawmakers are pushing to join them in West Virginia, where more adults use cigarettes than anywhere else in the nation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The state Senate on Monday passed a bill calling for fines for anyone caught smoking or possessing a lit tobacco product in a vehicle when someone age 16 or under is present. The bill passed on 25-8 vote and now goes to the House of Delegates, where similar legislation has failed and it faces an uncertain future. (Raby, 2/12)

The Department of Veterans Affairs plans to expand eligibility for Agent Orange disability benefits to Vietnam-era veterans who served at 129 locations in the U.S. during specific time frames, as well as parts of Canada and India, officials announced Friday. Ahead of a notice published Monday in the Federal Register, VA officials also said they plan to widen eligibility for veterans who were sickened by herbicides used after World War II in the Demilitarized Zone in Korea in the 1950s and in areas off the shores of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. (Kime, 2/12)

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin underwent new medical procedures under general anesthesia on Monday to address a bladder problem that landed him back in the hospital over the weekend, the Pentagon said, as officials forecast he would resume his job duties soon. Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, told reporters that doctors had performed “non-surgical procedures” on Austin, 70, related to an “emergent bladder issue.” Ryder declined to provide more information about what was entailed or what symptoms the defense chief had experienced before returning to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Sunday, his third admission there since having surgery to treat prostate cancer in late December. (Ryan and Nirappil, 2/12)