Michigan Officials Release Vape Sickness Testing Results
[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]T[/dropcap]he Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, working with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, revealed the results of vaping materials for five cases of vape-related lung injuries in the state.
Of five samples, two patients’ products contained only nicotine. One patient’s products contained only THC. One patient’s products contained both THC and nicotine. One patient’s products contained THC and vitamin E acetate. One product, a Dank Vape Birthday Cake THC cartridge, contained 23 percent vitamin E acetate.
“We urge Michiganders not to use e-cigarette or vaping products, particularly those containing THC,” Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, the state’s chief medical executive, said in a statement. “This outbreak is still under investigation, and the exact substance or devices that are causing the outbreak are unknown.”
Michigan recently became the first state to officially ban e-cigarettes. The state already started putting the ban into place in September, and now it has been implemented.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer claimed she would try and make moves to restrict marketing, preventing companies from advertising vaping products with terms like “clean,” “safe,” “healthy” and other terms that make vaping instead of smoking seem “harmless.”
The governor imposed a six-month ban on the sale of flavored e-cigarettes. The ban can be approved for another half a year, and she hopes it becomes a law.
While Michigan is the first state to make an official move, many states, and the nation are considering making similar moves. “This situation, and the rising tide of youth tobacco use, is a top public health priority for the Trump administration,” Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement last week.
American Heart Association CEO Nancy Brown agreed that implementing a ban on flavored e-cigarettes will “protect Michiganders, particularly the state’s youth, from the known and unknown potential health risks of e-cigarette use.”
Many feel that flavored vapes, specifically, help encourage teen use. Many other states, such as Oregon, are also making these moves. The next six months will show how the state does without legal flavored vapes.
