Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
As State Vaping Restrictions Kick In, Worries About The Emergence Of An Unregulated Black Market Take Shape
More than half of consumers in a new poll believe that a ban on vaping devices would merely drive Americans to an unregulated black market. USA Today reported Wednesday that a survey conducted by the newspaper and Ipsos polling found that 59 percent of Americans polled, including 82 percent of those who say they use e-cigarettes regularly, believe that a ban on vaping products would drive consumers to purchase from unlicensed dealers. (Bowden, 10/2)
Utah health officials enacted an emergency rule Wednesday restricting the sale of flavored e-cigarettes and requiring warnings about unregulated THC products amid an outbreak of lung illness related to vaping. All tobacco sellers will be required to post notices about the danger of vaping unregulated THC, the high-producing ingredient in marijuana that’s been linked to most lung-damage cases in Utah. (10/2)
Stores throughout Michigan have stopped selling flavored electronic cigarettes to comply with a ban that started Wednesday. Court of Claims Judge Cynthia Stephens declined to stop the ban with an injunction Wednesday. But she says she’ll hold another hearing on Oct. 8. Store owners are suing, saying the prohibition will cripple their business. (10/2)
A national vaping group and its members have filed a federal lawsuit seeking an immediate end to the state’s four-month ban on the sale of nicotine and cannabis vaping products, ramping up industry pressure on the Baker administration just a week after the order went into effect. The Vapor Technology Association, which has more than 1,000 members, filed the lawsuit Tuesday asking a judge to immediately intervene and end the ban, imposed as part of a public health emergency. (Valencia, 9/2)
A national industry group has asked a federal judge to immediately end Massachusetts’ four-month ban on the sale of all vaping products. The lawsuit filed Tuesday by the Vapor Technology Association says unless it is ended, the ban announced by Gov. Charlie Baker on Sept. 24 will destroy the state’s $331 million nicotine vapor products industry and cause “irreparable harm” to many law-abiding retailers, manufacturers, and distributors. (10/2)
An Arkansas teenager who began vaping last year is suing a leading e-cigarette maker, accusing the company of deceptive marketing and fraudulently concealing the addictive nature of its products. (10/2)
