New York lawmaker proposes e-cigarette prevention program in schools

Keith Brown, a D-Northport legislator, has introduced A.10547 to amend the state's public health law. The bill would require those who use electronic cigarettes or vaping products in schools to participate in electronic cigarette or vaping prevention, control, or awareness programs. This program would be part of a larger statewide effort in New York to create an education initiative for schools aimed at preventing electronic cigarette use. According to the bill text, children under the age of 21 found to be using or in possession of electronic cigarettes or vaping products would also be notified to their parents or guardians.

E-cigarettes are a relatively new product that has been marketed towards non-smoking young people with a variety of sweet-flavored e-liquids and advertising campaigns," Brown wrote in his legislative reasoning. "In addition, certain e-cigarettes designed for young people are small, stylish and can be easily hidden by authorities, with user-friendly pre-filled liquid pods that contain as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes. The New York State Department of Health has received numerous reports from doctors across New York state of patients aged between 14 and 71 who had used an e-cigarette product before becoming ill.

As Brown's legislation is being introduced, the federal government is considering a review of Juul, one of the largest electronic cigarette manufacturers. On June 23, the FDA ordered Juul to withdraw its products from the market. A day later, the Federal Appeals Court temporarily blocked the government's ban at Juul's request. The FDA then decided to suspend the court proceedings while the government resumed its review of Juul's products.

According to documents, if the FDA ultimately decides to reinstate the ban, Juul will have 30 days to seek another stay. As reported by the Associated Press, the company must prove that its e-cigarettes are beneficial to public health in order to remain on the market. In practice, this means demonstrating that adult smokers who use them may quit or cut back on smoking, while adolescents are unlikely to become addicted to them.

According to a report by the Associated Press, the FDA regulatory agency recently authorized electronic cigarettes from major competitors of Juul, including RJ Reynolds and NJOY. However, industry stakeholders and anti-vaping advocates have been eagerly waiting for the FDA's decision on Juul products, which are the top-selling e-cigarettes in the United States. The FDA initially stated that Juul's application left significant issues with the regulatory agency, including concerns about the chemicals in the e-liquid. Juul has stated that it has submitted enough information and data to address all the raised concerns.

Meanwhile, the European Commission has announced that its proposal is to address the significant increase in sales of such products in 27 countries/regions. According to reports from the Associated Press, a recent commission study showed that sales of heated tobacco products increased by 10% in five or more member states, while these products accounted for over 2.5% of total tobacco product sales in the region. The ban will cover devices that use heated tobacco to produce emissions containing nicotine for inhalation by users. Electronic cigarettes may contain nicotine, but not tobacco. When using traditional cigarettes, users inhale smoke generated by burning tobacco.

The results of FDA's review of Juul and the proposed ban by the European Commission could affect the appeal of Brown's legislation in state legislatures when the legislative session begins next year. Brown's bill takes a tough stance on the practicality of e-cigarettes.

Young people using e-cigarettes is a major public health issue, as they are using them more frequently than traditional tobacco products such as cigarettes, cigars, smokeless tobacco, and hookahs,” wrote Brown in his legislative rationale. “In fact, the number of high school students using e-cigarettes in New York State is almost five times the number smoking cigarettes, and while the youth smoking rate in New York State is at an all-time low (4.3%), their e-cigarette usage rates have increased from 10.5% to 20.6% between 2014 and 2016. Although few high school students say they plan to try smoking, more and more are willing to try e-cigarettes. More than half of teenagers think e-cigarettes cause little or some harm not used every day, and among young e-cigarette users, a third mistakenly believe that non-daily e-cigarette use is harmless. Using e-cigarettes does not prevent smoking; in fact, the risk of starting or continuing smoking increases among young people who use e-cigarettes, with more than half of high school and young adult cigarette smokers also using e-cigarettes.

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