New York Joins the Effort to Ban Flavored E-Cigarettes
Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, announced he will push for a ban of flavored e-cigarettes and vaping products in the state. This would follow a similar ban by the state of Michigan and a call for federal prohibition of the products by President Trump.
While Americans will still have the freedom to smoke e-cigarettes and vaping products, many will have limited access to flavors. Michigan, New York, and President Trump are among the first to make legal actions in response to the rise in vape-related deaths and cases of lung disease.
Speaking in Manhattan, Democratic governor Cuomo said the state’s Public Health and Health Planning Council and state health commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker would issue an emergency regulation banning flavored e-cigarette products.
New York is not the first to enact regulations against vaping products. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last week that 380 confirmed or probable cases of lung disease associated with e-cigarettes have been identified in 36 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands, with six confirmed deaths.
A few weeks ago, Michigan enacted a similar ban, and just last week Trump announced that his administration would work towards banning flavored vaping products as well.
"Vaping has become a very big business, as I understand it, but we can't allow people to get sick and allow our youth to be so affected," the president said.
Why, though, is there such a push against flavored products specifically? While vaping is vaping, no matter the flavor, studies have shown that young consumers are driving the sale of flavored vaping products as opposed to non-flavored forms. By banning flavored e-cigarette and vaping products, many groups hope to curb sales and decrease the number of youth negatively affected by the product.
"We intend to clear the market of flavored e-cigarettes to reverse the deeply concerning epidemic of youth e-cigarette use that is impacting children, families, schools and communities," said Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar.
Cuomo is not a new opponent to e-cigarette and vaping products: In July, he signed a law that raised the minimum age for purchase of tobacco and e-cigarettes from 18 to 21 in the state of New York.
Read more on the pending New York ban from NPR’s article.