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The Trump administration is considering backing away from a pledge to ban popular mint and menthol vaping products -- part of an effort to stem use among kids and curb a growing health crisis -- as e-cigarette advocates press to preserve some flavors for adults. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said last month that the administration would soon ban all flavors of vaping products except tobacco-flavor. But the administration is reconsidering on mint and menthol, two people familiar with discussions said. They asked not to be identified because no decision has been made. (Wingrove, Porter and Cortez, 10/25)

Fewer reports of vaping illnesses are coming in, but U.S. health officials say they are not sure what to make of it. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 125 additional cases were reported in the last week, bringing the total to 1,604 in this year's outbreak. That includes 34 deaths, one more than last week. The outbreak is still happening, but the count of new cases has dropped for three straight weeks. A CDC spokeswoman said reporting delays could be one explanation. (Stobbe, 10/24)

The deaths have occurred in 24 states, as of Oct. 22, among people whose ages ranged from 17 to 75 years. Investigators have not linked the cases to any specific product or compound, but have pointed to vaping oils containing THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, as being especially risky. (10/24)

“People five months ago were talking about these fake cartridges that were being sold,” said Yulin Hswen, a computational epidemiologist at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School who collected and analyzed the data. “In the comments five months ago, they were saying these oils are bad.” The number of cases grew by 125 this week, a smaller increase than the week before. (Abbott, 10/24)

Meanwhile, state health departments tell NBC News they've either confirmed or are investigating more than 2,100 cases. Alaska remains the only state without any reported cases. Two more vaping-related deaths were confirmed Thursday, one in Tennessee and another in Washington, DC. That brings the total number of deaths so far to 36. Other deaths are under investigation. As the search for a definitive cause continues, a small study published last week in the American Journal of Clinical Pathology provided a closer look at the damage to lung tissue caused by vaping THC. (Edwards, 10/24)

D.C. health officials on Thursday reported the city’s first death associated with vaping. In a statement, the D.C. health department confirmed the fatality, saying more than 1,600 cases of lung injury related to e-cigarettes or vaping have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control from all states but Alaska. The victim was not identified by D.C. authorities. (Moyer, 10/24)

The CDC says it doesn't know the cause of the illnesses, and no brand or substance has been linked to all cases. THC, the psychoactive component in marijuana, has been present in most of the samples tested by the Food and Drug Administration to date, and most patients report a history of using THC-containing products, the CDC said. (Weixel, 10/24)

In the wake of vaping-related deaths and illnesses, the Drug Enforcement Administration is expanding "National Prescription Drug Take Back Day," and this year allowing people to drop off electronic vaping devices and cartridges. The annual event lets people anonymously dispose of expired, unused, and unwanted prescription medications at collection sites across the U.S. (Treisman, 10/25)

The US Food and Drug Administration is going after vaping company Eonsmoke LLC with a warning letter seeking to remove roughly 100 flavored vaping products from the market, saying the company "has ignored the law by marketing dozens of unauthorized e-cigarette products," according to a statement by Acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Ned Sharpless. (Nedelman, 10/24)

Kaiser Health News: Los Angeles Vape District A Black-Market Gateway

A five-block section of downtown Los Angeles that used to be part of the city’s Toy District has become ground zero for the nation’s counterfeit cannabis trade. While a few remaining stores sell fidget spinners and stuffed animals, the majority are hawking vape cartridges, e-juice flavors, vaporizers and other wholesale smoking and vaping supplies — including knockoffs that originated in China. (De Marco, 10/25)

Governor Charlie Baker’s ban on vapes has been dealt another legal setback, after a state appeals court judge late Wednesday upheld an earlier ruling that will force the governor to either allow nicotine vape sales to resume Monday or begin the process of implementing the ban as a formal emergency regulation. On Monday, Suffolk Superior Court Judge Douglas H. Wilkins had ruled that a coalition of nicotine vape companies was likely to prevail in its lawsuit challenging the four-month ban, which Baker implemented last month in response to an outbreak of vaping-related lung illnesses. (Adams, 10/24)