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COVID-19 Update: Some EU Countries Allow Vape Shops to Remain Open

While most countries have left tobacco shops open alongside essential shops such as grocery stores and pharmacies, some European countries have thankfully also ensured that vapers have access to the tobacco safer alternatives.

Diane Caruana

March 26, 2020

While France, Spain and Italy have allowed the re-opening of vape shops, other European nations such as Malta, are only allowing purchases via delivery. Other countries such as the UK, are still negotiating the terms of the lockdown.

To this effect the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) is urging local authorities to keep vape stores open across the country, pointing out that closing them could force many former smokers to resort back to smoking. In an open letter to the relevant authorities, the UKVIA referred to the situation in Italy, where despite the alarming rate of contagion, the government has reversed its decision to close vape stores.

Similarly in France, in an amendment of the March 14th decree, vape shops are recognized as “of public interest” and are allowed to reopen, as long as they set in place all the necessary precautions to avoid the transmission of the coronavirus.

“There is no evidence on any effects of e-cigarettes on coronavirus infectivity and disease progression, and we cannot exclude the possibility that the use of propylene glycol might have some beneficial effects.…It is sad to see that the coronavirus epidemic is being used (and abused) in the political arena.”Dr. Konstantinos Farsalinos

Does vaping increase the risk of contracting the virus?

While the World Health Organization has said it’s possible that smokers may be at an increased risk of more severe reactions to Covid-19, other entities such as well known vape-hater Dr. Stanton Glantz, have also linked vaping to a higher risk of contracting the virus. (The Journal of the American Heart Association was recently forced to retract a study linking vaping to heart attacks by Glantz, on grounds that it failed to prove the claims it made.)

Meanwhile, renowned anti-smoking activist and researcher Dr Konstantinos Farsalinos M.D, has dismissed the link between vaping and contracting the virus. “There is no evidence on any effects of e-cigarettes on coronavirus infectivity and disease progression, and we cannot exclude the possibility that the use of propylene glycol might have some beneficial effects.…It is sad to see that the coronavirus epidemic is being used (and abused) in the political arena,” said the cardiologist.

Read Further: Bloomberg