Last year, Michigan became the first state to ban flavored e-cigarettes. Now, Governor Gretchen Whitmer is trying to make it a permanent rule through executive rulemaking.
Her move comes after a string of mysterious lung illnesses that have affected young people. The Democrat says her number one priority is keeping kids safe.
What Are The New Rules?
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer made headlines last month when she ordered a ban on the sale of flavored vaping products. She did this by way of the state’s administrative rules process, which allows state agencies to create regulations or policies that, once authorized, act as laws.
This emergency rule is set to run for six months, after which time the state would have to go through a formal rules process through the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. Once this is complete, the ban can be extended for another six months.
This ban is being opposed by many vapers and small businesses across the country. It also is being challenged by two lawsuits filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan and in the state Court of Claims.
Tobacco-Flavored E-Cigarettes
In September, Governor Gretchen Whitmer made Michigan the first state to ban flavored vaping products. She did so to combat what she called a public health emergency.
She argues that e-cigarettes are becoming more popular with kids, especially those who are trying to quit cigarettes, and that flavored vapes attract them.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services issued an emergency order to ban flavored vaping products, which will last six months.
The rule covers retail sales of flavored e-cigarettes, including those that use fruit and sweet flavors, as well as mint and menthol ones. It also bans misleading marketing of vaping products, according to a news release from the department.
Fruit-Flavored E-Cigarettes
In the first ban of its kind at the state level, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer used her emergency rulemaking powers to prohibit the retail sale of flavored vaping products. These include sweet and fruit-flavored e-cigarettes, as well as mint and menthol ones.
A new study suggests that e-cigarette users are more likely to remain smokers if they start with a flavored product. Researchers from the University of Rochester
Medical Center analyzed data on e-cigarette use in teens, young adults and adults before and after a nationwide ban by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2020.
The researchers found that teen and young adult e-cigarette users shifted to other flavored products after the FDA’s ban, but that the ban did not reduce overall use of e-cigarettes. Moreover, e-cigarette use among adults increased after the ban, which researchers said may have been due to the fact that many users had been able to quit smoking traditional cigarettes with a flavored e-cigarette.
Mint-Flavored E-Cigarettes
Michigan’s ban on flavored vapes is aimed at reducing teen use. Governor Gretchen Whitmer said she wants to curb “candy-like” e-cigarettes that appeal to youths and encourage a new generation of smokers.
While it may be tempting to think the flavored e-cigarettes are a safe alternative, research has shown that they are not. Instead, they are hooking young people on nicotine.
A study published in the Journal of Pediatrics last month found that young people who vape a lot are more likely to choose mint flavors. The researchers looked at data from waves 1 to 4 of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study, which is a national survey of American adults.
Chocolate-Flavored E-Cigarettes
The new rules, which were released this week, are designed to keep vape companies from releasing flavors that appeal to kids, like fruit and bubblegum. But they don’t ban the use of other flavors, like mint or menthol, which some health experts believe might encourage adult smokers to switch to e-cigarettes.
In an effort to curb teen vaping, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer issued an emergency rule last year banning the sale of flavored e-cigarettes. The ruling was backed by numerous state and national health groups, including the American Lung Association.
But a flavor ban will likely not help stem the soaring sales of flavored e-cigarettes on the black market, which thrives on social media and other online channels. “I don’t think that this is going to have an impact on the black market,” says Dan Jackler, a tobacco researcher at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
