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Attorneys General take a stand on e-cigarette sales to minors, so as to hasten the measures taken against this vicious fad that is running rampant among teens.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration(FDA) has been repeatedly notified in regards to the dire necessity that stronger measures be taken towards preventing minors from procuring e-cigarettes. The only positive effects of vaping have been identified in people who are trying to quit smoking, since even vaping is less harmful than smoking.
However, vaping alone has been proven to come with a great many health risks, since it combines nicotine addiction with tasty attractive flavors that greatly appeal to people of all ages, but especially to the younger audience. Therefore, states attorneys general have decided that it is crucial that special effort is taken towards preventing them from buying e-cigarettes.
“The key is to avoid another generation being addicted to nicotine,” said Greg Zoeller, Indiana Attorney General, thus perfectly summarizing the goals of these anti-vaping measures.
Back in 2014, the FDA has elaborated a proposal that vaping be banned to people under 18, but their proposal has remained under review since then. Thus, it has never been made into an actual law, which has given way to every state to adopt their own limitations to the legality of vaping.
Naturally, the situation is rather confusing at the moment, as there are some states that have imposed strict bans on e-cigarettes regarding selling vaping products to minors, public vaping and the taxes assigned to e-cigarette products. But there are also others that have a loose approach on the matter, thus essentially leaving the matter up to the will of the people.
Fortunately, the balance is clearly shifted towards the ban on e-cigarettes, as there are 46 U.S. states that have taken action against the availability of vaping gear to minors. Furthermore, a total of 12 states have also issued measures that require e-cigarette production companies to produce child-proof packaging for all of their products.
The aim of the states attorneys general is to make sure that these measures are applied nation wide, so that young people be kept safe from the firm grip of nicotine addiction. And they intend to achieve their goals by any means necessary. This implies that they find uses for existing laws that could be applied in the fight against teen vaping.
They will pressure e-cigarette manufacturing companies and local retailers, all so that a future epidemic is stopped in its early stages, before it causes even more damage to the young American generation.
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