Anti-vaping campaigns look suspiciously like D.A.R.E. 2.0. Tobacco control harm reduction hypocrisy. Plans to lie to UK football players about snus risks. CASAA CEO quoted. Clive Bates on rethinking nicotine. Calls to Action and more!
Scroll to the bottom of this post for a link to the audio/video versions of this post!
CALL TO ACTION // Vermont Flavor Ban
S.18 would ban the sale of any flavored tobacco or nicotine product regardless of FDA authorization, including products that are allowed to be marketed as less harmful than cigarettes!
S18 has passed the Senate and is moving to hearings in the House.
READ MORE: Vermont – Fight a Flavor ban!
CALL TO ACTION UPDATE! // Oregon Flavor ban
HB 3090 would ban nicotine and tobacco products in flavors other than tobacco. This bill is moving to a meeting in the Joint Ways and Means Committee. We will update when a hearing date is announced!
READ MORE: Oregon – Stop a Flavor Ban!
CALL TO ACTION // New York Flavor Ban
Governor Kathy Hochuk is proposing to ban flavors even for the few, far safer tobacco and nicotine alternatives to smoking that are still legally available for sale in NY. This isn’t just a ban on menthol cigarettes! She’s also proposing another tax hike!
TAKE ACTION: New York – Stop a Flavor Ban!
CALL TO ACTION // Minnesota Flavor Ban
SF2123 was ultimately passed and referred to the Senate State and Local Government and Veterans Committee. The House companion bill, HF 2177 (Rep. Ethan Cha, DFL-Woodbury) has yet to be scheduled for a hearing.
TAKE ACTION: Minnesota – Stop a Flavor Ban!
CALL TO ACTION // Nebraska Vapor Tax
LB 584, a 5c/mL tax on e-liquid scheduled for a hearing on Tuesday, was pulled from the agenda, potentially for changes that may include a 20% wholesale tax which could mean a price increase from the original 5c/mL.
TAKE ACTION: Nebraska – Stop a Vapor Tax
If you’re trying to reduce smoking harms, you don’t lie (ie. claiming vaping is a risk to bystanders) to take away important incentives for people who smoke to switch to far safer alternatives. Businesses should be able to choose!
READ MORE: Lawmaker Pushes to Ban Vaping Indoors
COMMENTARY // Rethinking Nicotine
Instead of asking, ‘is this appropriate for the protection of public health?,’ in the future, we would ask, ‘are the risks associated with this product acceptable for recreational nicotine use?'”
“Despite the dogmatic rear-guard action of tobacco control activists, traditional tobacco control is being steadily overtaken by the strategy of tobacco harm reduction. But tobacco harm reduction is an interim stage in the evolution toward a full rethink of the place of nicotine in society.”
~ Clive Bates
READ MORE: Beyond Tobacco Harm Reduction
CASAA IN ACTION // CEO Alex Clark Quoted
“Alex Clark, CEO of the Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association, cited the use of flavored products as a step toward getting people to stop smoking cigarettes.
“It would ban products that are demonstrably less harmful than smoking,” Clark said in an interview.”
TOBACCO CONTROL // Unclear and Inaccurate Information
From the article: “…members will receive clear and accurate information…”
Well, not so much if you’re telling them that snus has a significant “increased risk of cancer, diabetes, heart and mouth disease.”
In truth, those “risks” are extremely low to nonexistent.
Tobacco control researcher here. Snus is one of the best studied reduced risk tobacco products out there. There is barely any elevated risk of death or cancer for users compared to non-use and it is demonstrably less harmful than smoking. This article's framing is just weird… https://t.co/7QNIFO3HMi
— Alex Liber 🇺🇦 (@AlexCLiber) March 30, 2023
READ MORE: PFA to warn players about risks of using snus during summer campaign
TOBACCO CONTROL // D.A.R.E. For Vaping
This Twitter thread about the tactics and ultimate failure of the D.A.R.E program should sound familiar to vapers:
If you went to school in the US from 1983-2009, chances are you attended a DARE (Drug Abuse & Resistance Education) program. The ubiquitous, well-funded federal program was meant to keep kids from using drugs. Instead it did the opposite.
8 reasons why DARE failed, a thread: pic.twitter.com/4k7pFFbZgj
— The Archaic Revival (@FatherMcKennaa) March 22, 2023
It’s eerily familiar to this:
TOBACCO CONTROL // Blind to Their Hypocrisy
Imagine Public Health saying “It’s difficult for the public health community to support safer sex products (ie. condoms) because in the eyes of the public we will then become responsible for the increased sexual activity among young adults and the consequences in the future.”
It’s difficult for the tobacco control community to support smokefree products because in the eyes of the public we will then become responsible for the increased use of nicotine products among young adults and the consequences in the future
— Niels Them Kjær (@NielsThem) April 6, 2023
TOBACCO CONTROL // Disingenuous Claims
“‘Medically speaking, there’s no safe amount of nicotine or tobacco,’ Dr. Tara Pelletier of MaineHealth said.”
Scientifically speaking, nothing humans consume is 100% safe, so the same could be said for coffee, tea, soda, alcohol, ice cream…even water. This is just another disingenuous claim intended to manipulate the public!
A retailer could be fined one thousand dollars for a first offense, and five thousand dollars for each offense after that. https://t.co/Y6QIGF6EVP
— WABI_TV5 (@WABI_TV5) April 7, 2023
READ MORE: Supporters of bill to ban flavored tobacco products rally in Augusta
CASAA TESTIMONIAL PROJECT
Anecdote 13,514:
When Scott was able to learn the TRUTH about nicotine, he was finally confident enough to switch completely to low risk vaping after smoking for nearly 29 years.
What’s YOUR real story? Click below to submit your testimonial today!
Submit Your Testimonial: CASAA Testimonial Project
CASAA MEDIA // Spotify
CASAA’s podcast is on Spotify! Please give us a follow here:
CASAA IN ACTION // Twitter Spaces
The week we recap the Reagan-Udall sessions with Amanda Wheeler, Tim Andrews and CASAA CEO Alex Clark, who all presented to the panel about FDA’s issues regulating reduced-harm products. What grade would you give FDA? Also available on CASAA’s Spotify channel (above.)
— CASAA (@CASAAmedia) October 26, 2022
CASAA IN ACTION // CASAA Live
CASAA Live is on alternating Saturdays at 4:30 PM ET/3:30 PM CT/2:30 PM MT/1:30 PM PT on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter!
If you missed the last CASAA Live episode you can catch up NOW before the next show!
On this past week’s episode, special guest Martin Cullip–Tobacco Harm Reduction author and international fellow of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance’s Consumer Center–spoke to to CASAA CEO Alex Clark and VP Logan Evans about FCTC COP10: What it is, how it affects tobacco control policies around the world, and how you can get involved!
TAKE ACTION // CASAA State Facebook Groups
Have you joined your CASAA State Facebook group yet? Check it out now! Click the link below, click on your state on the map, then click the “Join Now” button to go to your state’s group page. It’s as easy as that to stay updated on local happenings, meet local advocates and never miss a Call to Action in your state!
Don’t forget to also follow our official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CASAAmedia
FIND YOUR GROUP: CASAA State Locator
CASAA STORE // Apparel and More
Show your support by shopping our store! Our president (and brilliant website/swag designer) Danielle has added some awesome new designs to CASAA’s apparel shop!
VISIT: CASAA Apparel and Swag Store
CASAA MEDIA // Podcast
Catch up on past tobacco harm reduction news with Alex and Logan on the CASAA podcasts on SoundCloud every Monday and now live on YouTube and Facebook every Saturday at 3:30 PM.
SoundCloud: