{"id":2215820,"date":"2024-04-08T17:26:02","date_gmt":"2024-04-08T21:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/alabamas-crackdown-on-vaping-clouded-by-smoke-over-claims-it-helps-big-tobacco\/"},"modified":"2024-04-08T17:27:56","modified_gmt":"2024-04-08T21:27:56","slug":"alabamas-crackdown-on-vaping-clouded-by-smoke-over-claims-it-helps-big-tobacco","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/alabamas-crackdown-on-vaping-clouded-by-smoke-over-claims-it-helps-big-tobacco\/","title":{"rendered":"Alabama&#8217;s efforts to regulate vaping are hindered by accusations that it inadvertently supports &#8216;Big Tobacco"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Falabamas-crackdown-on-vaping-clouded-by-smoke-over-claims-it-helps-big-tobacco%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2215820&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Alabama lawmakers are considering a bill\u200d to combat underage \u2062vaping, facing opposition from health associations concerned it aids\u2062 &#8220;Big Tobacco.&#8221; The proposed legislation, supported in the House, aims to raise fines\u200b for underage\u2062 vaping\u2063 and \u200bregulate \u200de-cigarette distributors. Advocates stress the need to protect youth from vaping-related risks despite pushback. Controversy \u2064surrounds \u200bthe bill&#8217;s potential impact on youth and the tobacco\u2062 industry.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/alabama\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Alabama<\/a> lawmakers are reportedly considering legislation in their final days of the spring session to crack down on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/vaping\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>underage vaping.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republicans-pass-bill-challenging-supreme-court-ruling\/\" title=\"House Republicans pass bill challenging SCOTUS ruling.\">bill received unanimous support<\/a> in the Alabama House, but it faces an uphill battle in the Alabama Senate as the American Lung Association and the American Heart Association have expressed doubts that the bill will curb underage vaping, according to <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.al.com\/news\/2024\/04\/why-alabama-lawmakers-are-battling-public-health-advocates-over-underage-vaping.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>AL.com<\/a><\/em>. The associations argue that the bill would be a win for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/tobacco\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>\u201cBig Tobacco.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have no (fear) for the Heart, Lung, or Cancer organizations,\u201d Alabama Democratic state Sen. Vivian Figures said. <\/p>\n<p>Last year, Figures proposed similar legislation that failed to come to fruition. Now she has Democratic state Rep. Barbara Drummond on her side, who sponsored <a href=\"https:\/\/alison.legislature.state.al.us\/files\/pdfdocs\/SearchableInstruments\/2024RS\/HB65-eng.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>HB 65<\/a>, which would increase fines for underage vaping and create permits to be renewed annually for Alabama\u2019s distributors of e-cigarettes.  <\/p>\n<p>Figures and Drummond want the legislation to move through the Senate, as it did in the House, to get to Gov. Kay Ivey (R-AL) before the legislative session ends in nine days. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think the momentum for this bill is good,\u201d Drummond said. \u201cWhat we\u2019ve seen over the past summer in Alabama is that more and more of our kids are getting either sick or are dying, and we don\u2019t know what the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/study-suggests-pregnant-women-vaccinated-for-covid-19-may-pass-on-antibodies-to-infants\/\" title=\"Study Suggests Pregnant Women Vaccinated For COVID-19 May Pass On Antibodies To Infants\">long-term effects<\/a> (of vaping) are to them. My overall goal is to make sure we safeguard the welfare of our young people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Drummond must convince other legislators to get on board with the legislation despite opposition from the ALA and the AHA, who say the restrictions on vaping would only help \u201cBig Tobacco.\u201d They are siding with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fda-investigation-into-juul-could-vaporize-e-cigarette-giant\/\" title=\"FDA Investigation Into Juul Could Vaporize E-Cigarette Giant\">e-cigarette companies<\/a>, such as Juul Labs Inc., to oppose the legislation.<\/p>\n<p>The AHA told the outlet it is opposed to the legislation because Alabama lawmakers should hold \u201cBig Tobacco\u201d accountable \u201cinstead of punishing our youth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnfortunately, Alabama continues to cater to Big Tobacco companies with legislation that benefits Big Tobacco and harms kids,\u201d said Jada Shaffer, the senior government relations lead for the AHA in Alabama. \u201cWhile pretending to address youth vaping, HB 65 gives Big Tobacco companies the monopoly on selling e-cigarettes through an unnecessary nicotine delivery system certification and directory, all while further victimizing Alabama\u2019s youth through penalties.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The new law would increase the penalties for those between the ages of 18 and 21 who are caught with an e-cigarette. The first violation would be a written warning, the second violation would be eight hours of community service, and the third violation would lead to a $100 fine. There would be \u201creasonable efforts\u201d to notify the parents or legal guardians of children under the age of 18 who are caught with a vaping device. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cKids already have a lifetime of punishment with a nicotine addiction. They don\u2019t deserve fines, community service, and suspension from schools,\u201d Shaffer said.<\/p>\n<p>The legislation would also implement a permit system for distributors of e-cigarettes for a $150 annual fee. The ALA said that the bill, however, repeals a state law limiting how close these stores can be to K-12 schools.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis would allow the tobacco industry to continue preying on Alabama\u2019s youth,\u201d said Ashley Lyerly, the ALA\u2019s senior director of advocacy for Alabama. Lyerly did, however, say the organization was in favor of the annual permit fee. <\/p>\n<p>Alabama has a higher-than-average <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lung.org\/research\/state-of-lung-cancer\/states\/alabama\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>rate<\/a> of lung cancer and ranks in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/news\/primary-care\/20220906\/us-states-with-the-highest-smoking-rates-in-2022\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>top 10<\/a> states with the highest smoking rates as of 2022. Drummond said her focus remains on keeping underage people and children away from smoking.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><strong>CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe focus, for us, is to get children off of this addiction that is turning their brains and lungs into mush. This is the No. 1 problem in our school systems,\u201d Drummond said. She added that she questioned the motives of the heart and lung associations. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo, yes, I question their motives. Their actions contradict what their goal is supposed to be, which is to save lives. And that has been my personal experience,\u201d Drummond said.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Alabama lawmakers are nearing the end of the spring session, contemplating a bill to combat underage vaping. The legislation garnered unanimous backing in the Alabama House but encounters challenges in the Senate. The American Lung Association and the American Heart Association have voiced concerns, adding complexity to the bill&#8217;s progress<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2910,"featured_media":2215821,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/vivian-figures-1024x591.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2215820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/vivian-figures-1024x591.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2215820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2910"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2215820"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2215820\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2215821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2215820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2215820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2215820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}