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NY State : Vaping is now banned from a number of public spaces

Yesterday on the 23rd of October, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo signed a bill that bans e-cigarette use in most restaurants, bars and workplaces. The ban goes into effect in a month’s time.

Diane Caruana

October 25, 2017

Last June, lawmakers in Albany voted to add vaping products to the state Clean Indoor Air Act, hence banning the devices from places where cigarettes are already banned, such as bars and restaurants.

When Cuomo said that the products carry “long term risks” to their users, he failed to add that these risks are calculated at only 1% to 5% of those carried by cigarettes.

This bill is only one of a series of blows received by vapers in the state. Last July, Gov. Cuomo signed a measure that bans vaping in all public and private schools, whilst earlier this month Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal (D-Manhattan), introduced a bill to ban the sale and distribution of flavoured e-cigarette liquids.

“These products are marketed as a healthier alternative to cigarettes, but the reality is they also carry long-term risks to the health of users and those around them,” said Cuomo yesterday in a statement. “This measure closes another dangerous loophole in the law, creating a stronger, healthier New York for all, ”he added about this latest ban.

Sending the wrong message to the public

On the other hand public health experts have been warning against the dangers of maintaining such an attitude and implementing measures that do not differentiate between e-cigarettes and regular cigarettes. Countless studies have indicated that the electronic devices are significantly safer than their deadly combustible counterparts, besides being also the most effective smoking cessation tools available to date.

When Cuomo said that the products carry “long term risks” to their users, he failed to add that these risks are calculated at only 1% to 5% of those carried by cigarettes. Hence regular smokers would benefit greatly by switching from smoking to vaping, and regulations that put e-cigarettes on the same shelf as regular cigarettes send the opposite message.

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