Effective immediately, flavored e-cigarettes are now banned in the state of New York. Vape vendors across the state must remove flavored e-cigarettes from their stores within two weeks.
The ban, however, does not include menthol or tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes.
"It is undeniable that vaping companies are deliberately using flavors like bubblegum, Captain Crunch and cotton candy to get young people hooked on e-cigarettes - it's a public health crisis and it ends today," Cuomo is quoted as saying by ABC News following the ban. "New York is not waiting for the federal government to act, and by banning flavored e-cigarettes we are safeguarding the public health and helping prevent countless young people from forming costly, unhealthy and potentially deadly life-long habits."
The ban comes after increased national concern about the safety of e-cigarettes amid an increase in lung diseases potentially linked to the devices.
As of September 11, there have been 380 cases of "lung illness associated with the use of e-cigarette products" reported to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The cases have been reported in 36 states and one US territory. As of earlier this week, six deaths across six states have been connected to e-cigarette products.
Michigan lawmakers have approved a similar ban on flavored e-cigarettes, but haven't enacted it yet, as details of the ban continue to be deliberated.
Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump also announced that his administration is considering banning flavored e-cigarettes and vape juices.
“We have a problem in our country. It’s a new problem,” Trump told top health officials last week, the Wall Street Journal reports. “It’s called vaping, especially vaping as it pertains to innocent children.” According to the president, First Lady Melania Trump has been pushing for increased regulation on e-cigarettes due to concerns about the products impacting their son, Barron - the youngest Trump.
