Concerns raised about e-cigarettes

The Maryland Department of Legislative Services reports of usage of electronic cigarettes (sometimes referred to as e-cigarettes) “According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 2010 and 2013, e-cigarette use more than doubled among U.S. adults, with about 20 million individuals trying the product in 2013.  Additionally, the ‘Wall Street Journal’ (citing a Wells Fargo analyst) reports that the e-cigarette market grew to almost $2.5 billion in 2014.”

What are e-cigarettes? According to St. Mary’s County Health Officer Dr. Meenakshi Brewster, e-cigarettes are “battery-operated devices containing liquid nicotine that is vaporized and inhaled by the user. Many popular brands such as Blu and NJOY are disposable and resemble cigarettes or little cigars, but personal vaporizers or PVs make up the fastest growing part of the market.”

Every six months the Commissioners of St. Mary’s County convene as the Board of Health and meet with the county health officer, who heads the St. Mary’s County Health Department. At the March 8 meeting Dr. Brewster gave the commissioners a report on e-cigarettes. Several of the commissioners asked questions and said they didn’t know much about the subject.

E-cigarettes are often touted as a way to kick the regular cigarette usage habit. She told the commissioners: “Some report that e-cigarettes have helped them quit conventional cigarettes; but we do not know yet if this is true in larger studies and if e-cigarettes are more or less effective than other cessation strategies. Some report that e-cigarettes only prolong the nicotine addiction and keep people smoking conventional cigarettes.”

During a Power Point presentation, Dr. Brewster pointed out some potential problems with e-cigarette usage:
• Potential risks to human health when used as intended;
• Amounts of the nicotine and other potentially harmful chemicals that are being inhaled during use; and
• Likelihood that e-cigarette use by youth leads to use of conventional cigarettes and tobacco products (which are already known to cause death and disease).

E-cigarettes can be sold at any retailer without a license, and in fact are available at most convenience stores. Additionally, Dr. Brewster told the commissioners there are no restrictions on Internet sales. Vape shops and retailer stores specifically catering to electronic cigarettes and their accessories are on the rise locally and nationally.

The Maryland General Assembly enacted legislation which became effective Oct. 1, 2012 that prohibits the sale of e-cigarettes to minors. And there are a number of bills on the table for the legislative session now convened that deal; with e-cigarettes, including HB 861 that adds the definition of e-cigarettes to regulations on sales, use, possession, distribution and taxation.

In a fiscal note on the bill, the Department of Legislative Services wrote: “General fund revenues increase, potentially significantly, beginning in FY 2017 due to the bill’s application of existing cigarette laws to ESDs (Electronic Smoking Devices)…”
E-cigarettes have been on the radar of Charles County Senator Thomas V. “Mac: Middleton, Last year he introduced a bill to prohibit the sale of the components of e-cigarettes, including the so-called ‘juice,” This year he introduced a bill to require child-resistant packaging. The bill received an unfavorable report by the Senate Finance Committee and was withdrawn.

E-cigarettes could have some future implication for the commissioners, including zoning restrictions for vape shops and other retailers. During the March 8 meeting the commissioners gave no indication about what they might do with the information provided by Dr. Brewster.

Even though it is a relatively new product, several trade groups have sprung up to protect the turf of those involved in it. They include Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association (TVECA), Electronic Cigarette Industry Group (ECIG) and Smoke Free Alternatives Trade Association SFATA). Representatives of those groups can be sure to be working that halls of Washington and Annapolis to oppose any efforts to limit e-cigarette use.\

The Tobacco-Free Living Team of St. Mary’s Healthy Partners has scheduled a public meeting on e-cigarettes for April 21. The gathering will be at 6 p.m. in the meeting room of Lexington Park Library. For more information on the meeting call 301-475-4391.

Leonardtown, MD -- E-cigarettes are hot!

Resource :  http://www.thebaynet.com/articles/0316/concerns-raised-about-e_cigarettes.html