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US-POLITICS-HEALTH-VAPING
Trump heads passionate debate on vaping, leaves issue unsettled
WASHINGTON, Nov 23, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – President Donald Trump said Friday he
was “here to listen” at a lively White House debate on the “very complex
subject” of vaping and the impact of kid-friendly e-cigarette flavors on
American youth.
After announcing he was considering a ban on flavored vaping products in
September, Trump has eased off at least temporarily, conceding to a vigorous
lobbying campaign by the tobacco and e-cigarette industries.
Ten days ago he called for talks where industry representatives and medical
professionals could reach an acceptable solution to the vaping “dilemma,” as
the practice comes under increasing scrutiny following a series of deaths.
“Children’s health & safety, together with jobs, will be a focus!” he
tweeted at the time.
The vaping industry is accused of targeting minors. The products’
cartridges are infused with fruit, candy or dessert flavors, thus luring a
new generation into nicotine addiction.
Vaping advocates warn a ban would cost jobs and smother the role of e-
cigarettes in weaning smokers off cigarettes.
Trump did not take sides on Friday, but led an animated discussion on
vaping for more than an hour, peppering those in attendance with questions
and engaging in sometimes-heated exchanges.
“What is your solution?” “What would you do?” “So you think flavors are
dangerous essentially?” Trump asked.
“Would you say it’s a lesser problem to smoking cigarettes? Do you think it
helps people quit?”
Trump asked if youth consumption — seen by health advocates as a growing
concern — would slide if flavors were removed.
“Will they add their own flavors in?” the president wondered. “A lot of
people want to leave the menthol.”
Many anti-smoking organizations and the American Cancer Society are urging
the president to stick to his original proposal to ban all flavored e-
cigarettes.
Trump expressed caution on that front, although he did say it would be
logical to set a national vaping minimum age at 21, something 18 of the 50 US
states have done.
– ‘Health emergency –
Trump has shown particular interest in Juul. The leading manufacturer of e-
cigarettes in the United States has already stopped selling its mango and
mint-flavored cartridge refills, which are popular among high school
students.
But it has defended its menthol products, retaining a flavor that is well-
known among American smokers.
“You are the head of Juul, what are you saying?” he asked an industry
executive at the roundtable, referring to the company’s decision to stop
selling certain flavors of its e-cigarette pods. “So you think flavors are
dangerous essentially?”
On several occasions the Republican billionaire, visibly moved by some of
the tobacco industry’s arguments, has said a ban on flavored versions would
lead to contraband products of lower quality being smuggled into the United
States.
Cartridge refills with THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, that
are sold on the black market are part of an epidemic of vaping-related lung
disease that has been blamed for 2,290 illnesses and 47 deaths in the United
States since the summer.
The public health crisis has now become a focal point of the debate on
vaping and youth.
Senator Mitt Romney, one of the few Republicans in Congress who openly
criticizes Trump, has made the vaping crisis one of his primary issues, and
found himself seated next to the president at Friday’s meeting.
He voiced adamant support for a flavor ban, saying, “We have to put the
kids first.”
“It’s the flavor that’s drawing the kids in” and getting them addicted to
nicotine, Romney said in a heated exchange with industry executives. “It’s a
health emergency.”
BSS/AFP/GMR/0829 hrs