On Tuesday, March 24th, CASAA sent a letter to Governor Tom Wolf in Pennsylvania, explaining to him the immense health threat of closing businesses that provide tobacco harm reduction products, such as nicotine-based, smoke-free vaping supplies.
It is vital that specialty vapor retailers are approved to remain open as long as they can demonstrate that they have an acceptable strategy for social distancing and sanitation protocols. Specialty vapor shops serve people who smoke and people who have completely switched to vaping. Even without the threat of COVID-19, due to a history of smoking this is a particularly vulnerable population when it comes to respiratory infections, heart disease, COPD, and other diseases attributed to smoking. If vapor shops are closed, thousands of Pennsylvanians may lose access to products that are helping them live smoke-free which lowers their risk of developing serious underlying conditions. Many of these people are at high risk of returning to smoking.”
You can read the letter in its entirety here.