Flavors Hook Kids Coalition: NY State E-Cig Ban Leaves Dangerous Menthol Loophole

Coalition including NAACP, social justice groups, more than 100 organizations reacts to NY's failure to include menthol e-cigarettes in flavors ban voted through today

NEW YORK, NY (09/17/2019) (readMedia)-- *** NAACP NY Health Chair Lorraine Braithwaite-Harte, Flavors Hook Kids Campaign Manager Andre M. Richardson are available for comment ***

The State Health and Health Planning Council voted today to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes in New York State--but unfortunately failed to include menthol. In response, Andre M. Richardson, Campaign Manager for Flavors Hook Kids NYC -- a local coalition of more than 100 groups representing parents, social justice organizations, health care professionals, and community groups -- issued the following statement:

"While we appreciate New York's desire to address the youth e-cigarette epidemic, the State created a massive, dangerous loophole today by exempting menthol-flavored e-cigarettes from its ban. New national data shows that almost 64% of high school students who use e-cigarettes use menthol and mint flavors. Further, more than half of youth smokers smoke menthol-flavored cigarettes--and the percentage is much higher in communities of color.

"New York City must now take immediate action to protect our kids from all forms of flavored tobacco products, including menthol-flavored e-cigarettes and cigarettes, and all other flavored e-cigarettes and cigars. No tobacco products should taste like menthol, mint or candy. The Council must immediately act to pass Intros 1345 and 1362. Our coalition will not stop until kids are protected from all flavored tobacco products in New York."

Mint and menthol e-cigarette are the fastest growing e-cigarette flavor in terms of popularity among youth. Data released from the 2019 National Youth Tobacco Survey shows the percentage of high school e-cigarette users who reported using mint and menthol flavors increased to 63.9% in 2019, up from 42.3% in 2017 and 51.2% in 2018.

NAACP NY Health Chair Lorraine Braithwaite-Harte issued the following statement:

"Today's ban doesn't solve the problem--menthol-flavored e-cigarettes must be included in any e-cigarette flavor ban if we are going to protect our kids and our communities," said Lorraine Braithwaite-Harte. "Big Tobacco has poured money into the black community to addict young people with menthol cigarettes for decades, and now they're doing the same thing with menthol-flavored e-cigarettes. The New York City Council must now act immediately to ban all flavored tobacco products-including menthol e-cigarettes and menthol cigarettes."

Flavored tobacco products make vaping and smoking easier and quitting harder--especially menthol-flavored products. Over half of youth smokers smoke a menthol-flavored tobacco product. Studies have shown that the tobacco industry has targeted African American communities with menthol marketing, in particular.

The federal government banned all flavored cigarette products a decade ago, but exempted menthol cigarettes, allowing the product to remain popular with youth. Since then, youth smokers turned from previous flavors to menthol.

BACKGROUND

New FDA survey data show youth use of e-cigarettes skyrocketed 135% in the last two years, and 5 million middle and high school students nationwide now use e-cigarettes. Last Tuesday, the Department of Health released data that shows 1 in 15 NYC middle school students reported using e-cigarettes and 14.4% of middle school students (about 29,000 students) had ever tried e-cigarettes.

Adding to the urgency, this summer, there have been at least 450 people across the country who were hospitalized for vaping-related illnesses and six people have died. In New York, the state Department of Health recently issued a warning about e-cigarette use, citing multiple cases of "severe pulmonary disease" among patients "who reported recent use of vape products."

Big Tobacco has also aggressively marketed flavored tobacco products to underage users for decades to hook new generations of smokers--particularly in communities of color, where menthol cigarettes are sold to young people, creating disproportionately negative health outcomes for African Americans.

Flavors Hook Kids NYC -- a coalition of more than one hundred health, religious, parent and community organizations -- is an all-out effort to restrict the sale of all flavored tobacco products in New York City, including e-cigarette flavors and menthol cigarettes, before 2020.

Members of the growing coalition are: Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, NAACP, Parents Against Vaping e-cigarettes (PAVe), African American Clergy and Elected Official organization (AACEO), American Cancer Society Action Network (ACS CAN), New York Communities for Change, American Cancer Society Action Network, the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council NAATPN, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Neighbors in Action, Last Call Church, United Concerned Citizens, NYPIRG, Bishop Courtenay of Emmanuel Church of God in Brooklyn, Arthur Ashe Institute Public Health, among others. The list is in formation.

The coalition is pushing for the passage of Intro. 1345 - a restriction of the sale of menthol cigarettes - and Intro. 1362 - a restriction of the sale of flavored e-cigarettes. Nearly half of NYC Council members support both bills.