The bill was signed into law by County Executive George Latimer, and besides cigarettes and other products that actually contain tobacco, it includes vaping products and other electronic devices. Vaping is now also included in the Westchester County indoor smoking ban.
“Somebody today is going to find it harder to get that tobacco product because of this law. And because it’s harder for them to get it now, somewhere 50 years down the road they’ll have aged without picking up the habit,” said Latimer in a news release.
The law will go into full effect in two months time, and is only one of the series of recent motions aimed at curbing e-cigarette use amongst minors, launched in the state of New York in recent months.
NY efforts to decrease teen vaping
While this time last year, lawmakers in Albany voted to add vaping products to the state Clean Indoor Air Act, hence banning the devices from places where cigarettes were already banned, such as bars and restaurants.
Additionally, Rosenthal has been pushing to ban the sale of flavored e-liquids in the state, whilst repeating the same old tired arguments about flavours attracting kids and encouraging them to try vaping. “If someone starts out smoking e-cigarettes with nicotine they are likely to get hooked,” she said.
E-cigs are less addictive than regular cigarettes
On the other hand, research data released several months back, indicated that vapers are less dependent on their electronic devices, than smokers are on combustible cigarettes. A study funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Center for Tobacco Products, clearly indicated that vapers have less cravings for e-cigs than smokers for cigarettes, they find it easier to refrain from using the products in restricted areas, and are less likely to consider themselves as addicts.
This study goes in line with the message that many public health experts have been trying to convey. Vaping products should not be regulated in the same way as deadly cigarettes, on the contrary they should be endorsed and regulated as harm reduction tools for smoking cessation.
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