…support your local vape shop!
Welcome new members!
Given the circumstances (flavor bans, all-out bans, moral panic, etc.), it’s no surprise that lots of new people are joining CASAA. If you’re new, please take a moment to look around our site for advocacy resources (including our Testimonials Project) and information about your state. Also be sure to keep up with us on social media (links below) and join your state’s CASAA Group on Facebook. You can find more details here.
While the percentage of patients diagnosed with lung injuries who claim that they vaped nicotine products exclusively continues to decline (it’s now at 10%), state and federal officials remain vigilant in treating ALL vapor products as if they are unquestionably linked to the outbreak. At the same time, early data from the National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) is being used to stoke fears about more and more young people experimenting with vaping. For the most part, the moral panic is focused on nicotine.
Much like the shifting goalposts of the anti-tobacco movement, anti-nicotine activists are throwing everything at the wall to see what sticks. These new arguments (and many of the old ones) were recently on full display during committee hearings on Capitol Hill. If you would like to familiarize yourself with what to expect at the state and local level in the coming months (and the 2020 legislative session), please take a moment to review the testimony from hand-picked witnesses and statements delivered in the form of questions from committee members.
- Sept. 24 – House Oversight Committee Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy, “Don’t Vape: Examining the Outbreak of Lung Disease and CDC’s Urgent Warning Not to Use E-Cigarettes.” (YouTube)
- Oct. 16 – House Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, “E-cigarettes: An Emerging Threat to Public Health.” (Committee Page)
- Oct. 16 – House Energy and Commerce Committee Subcommittee on Health, “Hearing on ‘Legislation to Reverse the Youth Tobacco Epidemic.’” (Committee Page)
- Related – HR 2339 (Palone, NJ-06)
While many are awaiting “final” guidance from the FDA regarding the sale of flavored vapor products, CASAA is reminding our members that local and state governments can move and ARE MOVING faster than the federal government. We expect to see a never ending supply of bad ideas pitched at city council meetings and, as is frequently the case, with little notice to stakeholders. Many of these proposals involve some sort of prohibition on sales of flavored products. The cosmic irony here is, of course, while we are having a national dialogue about the need to reform drug laws and regulate a legal marketplace in order to protect consumers (and stop throwing people in prison), we are also seeing a national panic about youth nicotine use opening up a new front of the failed, racist war on drugs. Feel free to point out that irony (and hypocrisy) to your nearest elected official. You can find all of your officials’ social media sites and even send them a message through CASAA’s Action Center, here 🙂
Stay safer,
Alex Clark, CEO
CASAA
P.S., Are you coming to Washington, D.C. for the rally on November 9th?
@CASAAmedia (twitter) | CASAAmedia (Facebook) | casaamedia (Instagram)
- “The Help A Smoker In Recovery Project is looking for vaping products to give those entering treatment for addiction …” (Sept. 9)
- David Bienenstock (Leafly) – “How the mainstream media botched the vape lung story.” (Oct. 16)
- Cassidy Morrison (Washington Examiner) – “Vaping advocates gear up to fight Trump proposed ban on flavors.” (Oct. 5)
- Jacob Sullum (Reason) – “Black market pot–not vaping–most to blame for lung disease outbreak.” (Oct. 8)
- Rachel Bluth and Lauren Weber (KHN) – “‘We Vape, We Vote’:How Vaping Crackdowns Are Politicising Vapers.” (Oct. 10)
- [Must Watch] Kristin Gaspar (San Diego County, CA County Supervisor) – Testimony on Youth Vaping (YouTube) (Oct. 15)
- Missouri – Gracee Mattiace (CBS 13 – KRCG) – “Governor Mike Parson holds press conference on vaping illnesses and death in Missouri.” (Oct. 15)
- Related – Alisa Nelson (Missourinet) – “Parson calls youth vaping figures an ‘epidemic’; orders campaign about youth vaping dangers.” (Oct. 15)
- CDC Newsroom – “CDC, States Update Number of Cases of Lung Injury Associated with Use of E-cigarette, or Vaping, Products.” (Oct. 17)
- Oregon – tobaccolawblog, “Michigan and Oregon Courts Block Vapor Bans Pending Further Review” (Oct. 18)
- Related – “OHA, OLCC file rules banning flavored vapid sales, including online.” (Oct. 11)
- Related – “Gov. Brown orders 180-day ban on flavored vaping products in Oregon.” [Pending OHA and OLCC rulemaking] (Oct. 4)
- Montana – “MT vape shops sue to block Gov. Bullock’s ban on flavored products.” (Oct. 17)
Fundraising:
- United Vapers Alliance – Rally in Washington, D.C., November 9, 2019!
- National Save Vaping Day – (Update) CASAA received more than $10,000 in donations from consumers and businesses as a result of the NSVD campaign. We are still in the process of receiving and tallying up donations from participating businesses and will update as soon as the results are in. All in all, the 1st annual NSVD was a resounding success and we are truly grateful to everyone who participated!
- If you missed the special day, don’t worry, our donate button is always live 🙂 Consider making a recurring monthly donation equal to the cost of a pack of cigarettes in your state.
Take Action:
- TAKE ACTION – NYC FLAVOR BAN IS HEADING BACK TO CITY COUNCIL! (Sept. 10)
- TAKE ACTION – US – VAPING PROHIBITION IS ON THE TABLE IN CONGRESS!
- TAKE ACTION – MA – End the War on Vaping!
- TAKE ACTION – RI – (Keep the pressure up) Call The Governor – Oppose the Vape Ban!
- TAKE ACTION – MI – Support HB 4996
- TAKE ACTION – OH – Oppose HB 346 and HB 347 (Flavor Ban)
- HEADS UP – Sonoma County, CA – “Sonoma County supervisors to consider ban on vaping devices amid escalating national health crisis.” (Oct. 8)
- HEADS UP – IN – “Indiana lawmakers pushed to adopt e-cigarette liquids tax.” (Oct. 15)
- HEADS UP – Shasta County, CA – “Shasta County considering banning the sale of flavored tobacco products.” (Oct. 16)
- HEADS UP – Lee County, FL – Tobacco-Free Lee Coalition Meeting (details here).
Highlights: (Oct. 9) (Oct. 10) (Oct. 15) (Oct 17) (Oct. 18)
- Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, Letter to OMB – “We believe the United States is heading for a crisis in this field in 2020 with potentially millions of Americans facing life-threatening regulation …” (Oct. 3)
- Brianna Andrews (Erie News Now) – “Erie Teen Who Almost Lost His Life To Vaping Admits To Using THC Pen.” (Oct. 10)
- Alex Norcia (VICE) – “Why People Are Dying from Vaping in the U.S. and Not the U.K.” (Oct.10)
- KIRO Radio Staff (mynorthwest .com) – “Vape store struggling with sales and layoffs due to WA flavored vaping ban.” (Oct. 19)
- Related – Dyer Oxley (mynorthwest .com) – “Temporary ban on flavored vaping products approved in Washington.” (Oct. 9)
- Darrell Moody (News 96.5 – WSBO) – “Researchers using nicotine patches to treat memory loss.” (Oct. 15)
- Anicka Slachta (Cardiovascular Business) – “E-cigs help 50K-plus smokers in the UK quit nicotine each year.” (Oct. 18)
- Vapor Technology Association (VTA) – [Ad] “Flavored Vapor – Protecting Our Health and Economy” (YouTube) (Oct. 16)
- Like getting this timely information? Help CASAA continue its mission by donating HERE.
- If you’re on Facebook, please be sure to join your CASAA state group to help prevent anti-harm reduction laws like these from spreading through your state! Click here to find your state group: CASAA State Facebook Group List
- Find your state information here: Find My State Info – CASAA
- And remember to officially join CASAA. Membership is FREE.
CASAA is made stronger with every voice we can count!
CASAA is 501(c)(4) tax-exempt organization. While CASAA is a non-profit organization and pays no income taxes on the donations it receives, contributions or gifts to CASAA are not deductible by the donor as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes.