* Jordan Abudayyeh in the governor’s office…
“Since taking office, the Governor has worked to protect the health and safety of all Illinoisans, especially our young people. He supports the efforts of state lawmakers to outlaw flavored e-cigarettes and vaping products, and also supports those proposals moving forward during the fall veto session.”
Background
- So far, this administration has worked with the General Assembly to raise the smoking age to 21, including for vaping and e-cigarettes.
- He also imposed the first-ever tax on e-cigarettes and vaping products to make them more difficult for young people to get their hands on.
- The Governor also convened a working group of medical and legal experts to study the scientific evidence so they can develop long-term solutions to keep Illinoisans safe and healthy.
Not sure why it’s necessary to ban a product for adult consumption when it’s already illegal for people under 21, particularly since there is no real connection between these products and the recent reported vaping illnesses. But the public and the media are in a furor, so politicians gonna politic.
- Dotnonymous - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 5:03 pm:
VaperMadness
- JB13 - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 5:07 pm:
Gov. JB “He Leads” Pritzker signs on to today’s crusade du jour. Shocking. More at 10.
- a drop in - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 5:12 pm:
Will menthol be considered a flavor?
- 47th Ward - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 5:19 pm:
Does no one understand how nicotine works? I’m sure stores in Indiana, Missouri and Wisconsin understand.
Illinois would be better off just hiking the taxes. At least we’d retain some revenue instead of losing it all to other states.
Also, if you know anything about nicotine, you’d understand that banning this stuff will force users back to tobacco. Great work guys!
- Career Politician 2.0 - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 5:23 pm:
When will they start regulating CBD that isn’t grown in IL? Hence when will the products at Discount Tobacco, Family Video, etc., be held to the same testing standards and recall process as products made in IL?
- Lester Holt’s Mustache - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 5:45 pm:
This will probably lead to a lot of young people losing their jobs at the hundreds of vape shops around illinois, but since they aren’t fancy tech jobs or left-wing advocacy group positions he won’t care. The state has a duty to protect people from themselves, after all
- NoGifts - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 6:36 pm:
It will lead to a black market on flavorings to add. That will be even worse. Why is the FDA awol in this question?
- Just Me - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 7:38 pm:
State politicians are going to politic, unless the issue is corruption at the City Council, in which case it is a “local issue.”
- downstateR - Tuesday, Sep 17, 19 @ 8:07 am:
Nicotine gum and patches aren’t going to sell themselves; you gotta knock out the competition.
- Charlie Brown - Tuesday, Sep 17, 19 @ 9:24 am:
JUUL is the Uber of vaping, they have already agreed to voluntarily stop producing flavored products (except for menthol). The move to ban flavored products while keeping non-flavored on the market benefits JUUL by keeping competitors out of the market and preempting the push for a total ban. Lightfoot spox already throwing shade on a total ban.
Big Tobacco will also see some benefit.
Hurrah!
- Just Sayin' - Tuesday, Sep 17, 19 @ 9:47 am:
There is a clinical link between a vape flavoring ingredient, Diacetyl, and lung related illnesses when inhaled:
https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/ehp.1510185 (”Conclusion: Because of the associations between diacetyl and bronchiolitis obliterans and other severe respiratory diseases observed in workers, urgent action is recommended to further evaluate this potentially widespread exposure via flavored e-cigarettes.”)