Lobbyists blowing smoke. Let’s ban flavored vapes
Back in the first days of this legislative session in Hartford — all of two months ago — we called for lawmakers to seize an easy opportunity to shield Connecticut’s children. “Connecticut has struggled to put a stop to the sale of flavored vapes due to an outcry from the tobacco industry and conservative charges of violating personal freedoms. Reducing tobacco use has taken decades, but is an American success story. Even tobacco giant Philip Morris International claimed to be striving toward a ‘smoke-free future’ when it moved to Stamford last year,” we wrote.
We hoped this would be an easy one. But then, lawmakers have been slow to address the issue. The teens who alarmed staff by smuggling vaping devices into classrooms when the products launched have since graduated into adulthood. Meanwhile, use of e-cigarettes among middle-schoolers tripled. For youth, the most popular tobacco product is the ecigarette.
So lawmakers are trying again to ban flavored vapes. Other states have lapped Connecticut in taking such action, including Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Jersey.
This has been through enough cycles that lawmakers know what to expect: lobbying from Big Tobacco. They also seem to know when to expect it. That the Public Health Committee advanced the bill last month wasn’t a surprise. But state Rep. Sean Scanlon, D-Guilford, co-chairman of the Finance, Revenue & Bonding Committee, predicted “intense lobbying” as it falls on his committee’s calendar.
Of course, that wouldn’t matter if lawmakers could resist being swayed by lobbyists.
Opponents of the ban lean on the argument that removing flavors is another obstacle for adults trying to wean off smoking, and insist it would boost the black market.
Those were points made by the president of the
Talk to the customers instead of the dealers. That means consulting parents, educators and kids.
American Vaping Association during testimony, and echoed by state Sen. John Fonfara, D-Hartford, who describes himself as a “vehement anti-smoker” and happens to be the other co-chair of the finance committee.
Connecticut has never been a leader on this issue. The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids ranks it last among states for tobacco prevention spending. Their data, updated in January, reports that 11.8 percent of adults in the state smoke. Efforts to decrease that figure seem at odds with the percentage of high school students who use e-cigarettes: 27 percent.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to approve certain e-cigarette products with the reasoning that the benefit for adults trying to break the habit outweighs the risk to youth.
The FDA is wrong. Such reasoning ignores the toxic solvents in vape products, which are masked with faux fruit flavors. The ingredients should be a mandatory topic in chemistry classes.
If Connecticut lawmakers want to make the right decisions regarding flavored vapes, there’s some simple research they might consider doing.
First, talk to the customers instead of the dealers. That means consulting parents, educators and kids.
Second, go shopping. Consider the motivation of pitching flavors such as “Cinnamon Funnel Cake,” “Killer Kustard,” “Strawberry Cheesecake,” “Blueberry Raspberry Lemon Salts,” “Banana Cream Pie,” “Sugar Cookie,” “Fizzy Lemonade,” “Blueberry Cake” ...
It’s time to end this endless list to bait children. Connecticut lawmakers need to break a bad habit as well. They are addicted to being swayed by lobbyists.