New study finds vaping doesn’t cause wheezing. CASAA gets mentions in two articles. UK giving out free vape kits. Tobacco control prohibitionists keep lying. 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
RESEARCH // Vaping Not Linked to Wheezing
A new longitudinal study found that exclusive vaping was not associated with an increase in the risk of self-reported wheezing.
"Using data from a nationally representative cohort study between 2013 and 2019, our findings suggest that the use of ENDS does not appear to be an independent factor associated with risk for self-reported wheezing."https://t.co/0taLsZ6W9p
— Jukka Kelovuori (@jkelovuori) April 3, 2023
CASAA In Action // Media Mention
The Consumer Advocacy for Smoke-free Alternatives Association (CASAA) is opposing the ban over fears it would remove safer alternatives to smoking.
“Minnesota’s flavor ban would undermine any decision by the FDA allowing low-risk, flavored tobacco products on the market,” CASAA stated on its website.”
READ MORE: Minn. proposed flavor tobacco ban faces opposition
TOBACCO HARM REDUCTION // UK Government Gets It Right
In a world first (according to the UK government,) one million people will be encouraged to swap their cigarettes for a free vape kit, with even pregnant women being offered financial incentives to make the change.
https://twitter.com/morris_canada/status/1645761165249720323
READ MORE: Britain to encourage smokers to swap cigarettes for vapes
TOBACCO CONTROL // Delusional Prohibitionists
Tobacco Control has truly lost control of common sense…and reality.
“There’s evidence to show banning nicotine is beneficial to society.”
“We’ve put in place something that could actually create a tobacco-free generation.”
Can they even hear how delusional they sound?
READ MORE: Brookline Nicotine Bylaw Hopes To Create A “Smoke-Free Generation”
TOBACCO CONTROL // Docs Get It All Wrong
Pediatricians claim nicotine vape flavors should be banned because of EVALI (except that was caused by illicit THC vapes,) that there’s “no evidence” adults “require fruit and candy flavors to quit smoking” (except surveys show adults by far prefer non-tobacco flavors,) that it’s a “gateway to smoking” (except record low smoking rates have disproved that,) and that “toxic chemicals” in vapes pose a health risk (except they ignore “the dose makes the poison.”)
You want to stop a declining trend. Brilliant.
— Stu Dowling (@stu_dowling) April 8, 2023
READ MORE: As pediatricians, we advocate banning flavored e-cigarettes to halt vaping trends
TOBACCO CONTROL // Self-serving Bans Only, Please
It seems like the anti-nicotine syndicate views safer alternatives to smoking as a greater threat (to them) than smoking is (to public health)? Would they still have purpose (and funding) if people were only using non-deadly forms of nicotine? 🤔
READ MORE: Tobacco sales phaseout withers in California without support from anti-tobacco advocates
TOBACCO CONTROL // Preventing Smoking Cessation
Palau’s adult smoking rate in 2000 was 30%. It dropped to 18.6% while vaping was legal. Smoking among men, however, is still at a whopping 28.5%.
Congratulations? You just banned even possessing a far safer product that was likely a big factor in your dramatic smoking decline.
TOBACCO CONTROL // A Dangerous, Irresponsible Lie
Their tweet says “not safe” (which is true, because nothing is 100% safe, including FDA-approved nicotine products,) but the graphic says “not safer.” This is a dangerous, irresponsible lie that will only convince people who can’t or won’t quit that they may as well keep smoking.
IN THE MEDIA // Showing Anti-Vaping Bias
This Medscape article opens with a story about a woman who was diagnosed with lung cancer after vaping for 7 years (never mind that she’d smoked for 40 years.) CASAA’s 13,000+ testimonials got a mention and a link, but the author said nothing about our mission to educate the public about tobacco harm reduction. She was keen to point out that CASAA accepts donations from the e-cigarette industry, though.🤷♀️
What she doesn’t tell readers is that the vast majority of our “industry” donors are small business owners who are mainly vapers who opened vape shops, and those donations are a drop in the bucket compared to the funding anti-nicotine groups get from tobacco company MSA payments and cigarette taxes.
READ MORE: Should You Recommend E-cigs to Help Patients Quit Smoking?
IN THE MEDIA // Missing All of the Facts?
Another “vaping caused lung collapse” article, also filled with alarmist and very misleading claims about “links to heart attacks, strokes and high blood pressure.” While not mentioned here, these cases nearly always turn out to be tall, thin teens who are already at risk for pneumothorax.
Spontaneous pneumothorax. This is most commonly seen in tall, thin men who smoke.
— Michael Buratovich (@MichaelBuratovi) April 12, 2023
READ MORE: Jerusalem Post Health & Wellness E-cig causes collapsed lung in 16-year-old Israeli
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, our guest is Jacob Grier, journalist and author of The New Prohibition: The Dangerous Politics of Tobacco Control. We discuss his new book, the history of tobacco control, and how the new tobacco prohibition trends are impacting vaping, tobacco harm reduction, public health and personal freedoms.
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: