Pa. moves to ban sale of e-cigarettes to minors
A sales associate demonstrates the use of a electronic cigarette and the smoke like vapor that comes from it in (Ed Andrieski/AP Photo, file)
Some state senators want to bring Pennsylvania in line with other states that have banned the sale of electronic cigarettes to anyone under the age of 18.
E-cigarettes produce vapor instead of smoke — but they still deliver a rush of nicotine to their user.
Such such nicotine replacement products shouldn’t be sold to minors, said Sen. Tim Solobay, D-Allegheny.
“There’s 28 states that have done this already,” he said. “The key, obviously, is prohibiting the alternative nicotine products to youth.”
Calls are mounting for federal restrictions on e-cigarette use and sales, said state Sen. Stewart Greenleaf.
“In September, there were attorneys general from 41 states, including our own, Attorney General Kathleen Kane, who sent a letter to the FDA urging them to take regulatory oversight over the advertising and sale of e-cigarettes to minors,” said Greenleaf, R-Montgomery.
In the meantime, the Pennsylvania Medical Society has urged state lawmakers to regulate the tobacco alternatives, saying nicotine has been linked to health problems.
Other nicotine products, such as gum, skin patches, and lozenges, already are already prohibited from being sold to minors under federal law.
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