Lauren J. Young, writing for Scientific American:

The U.S. is finally getting a new, better sunscreen ingredient. Today the Food and Drug Administration added bemotrizinol, an effective chemical filter that’s been used in sunscreens made in Asia and Europe for decades, to its list of permitted active ingredients in over-the-counter sunscreens. This list hasn’t seen a new entry in more than 20 years.

Bemotrizinol, also called BEMT, brings the list of approved active sunscreen ingredients in the U.S. to 17–a number that still lags behind Europe, which has more than 30 approved filters. While the FDA’s official action comes just seven months after the agency initially proposed it, critics have pointed out that the lengthy regulatory process prolonged bemotrizinol’s approval; the application was filed in 2005. The Environmental Working Group, an environmental health advocacy organization, has claimed this delay has caused U.S. sunscreens to fall behind in better coverage against harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays. Experts say today’s decision is a move in the right direction, offering people stronger protection from the sun.

I had no idea bureaucratic red tape held up these sorts of advancements for actual decades.

At least it seems to be moving in the right direction:

Not only is bemotrizinol now the first filter to obtain the FDA’s stamp of approval since 1999, it’s also the first and only organic filter to receive the FDA’s safety and effectiveness standard, known as generally recognized as safe and effective (GRASE), for over-the-counter drugs or ingredients that don’t require full regulatory approval.