Still love them menthols?

Almost a year after pledging to extinguish the controversial cigarettes, President Joe Biden’s proposal to put out menthols once and for all just got closer to reality.

The FDA released a plan today to ban menthol flavored cigarettes, and it has a lot of Black folks puffing — not just smokers.

Blacks in the U.S. are more likely to suffer health issues related to smoking compared to White smokers who light up at about the same rate, CDC research has found.

However, the CDC study shows nearly two thirds of Black smokers prefer menthol flavored cigarettes.

Biden isn’t the first President to try to stomp out menthols. Former President Obama, who openly struggled with putting down the lighter, was urged by many Black health care professionals to ban menthols. The Trump Administration aimed at flavored e-cigarettes, but stopped short of menthols.

Biden’s menthol ban has been criticized as a roundabout attempt to address Black health under the umbrella of a sweeping policy that impacts every American who smokes these controversial cigs.

But why prioritize menthol cigarettes right now? That’s what many Black people are asking.

No one smokes for their health. There have been numerous reports that indicate racial disparities linked to smoking and health outcomes for Blacks compared to other racial groups. But there are virtually endless racial disparities in U.S. health care. We know this.

A study released last month indicated about one in four Blacks and Latinos said they believe they experienced racial discrimination in a health care setting.

Systemic racism in health care. Who knew?

Opinion: If President Biden wants to genuinely address Black health, ridding the health care system of America’s real cancer might go further with his smoldering approval ratings.