Michigan’s governor, Democrat Gretchen Whitmer, whose emergency order was rejected by a court, is trying to further ban flavored e-cigarettes containing nicotine across the state.
It is reported that the Michigan Department of health and human services (MDHHS) will hold a virtual public hearing at 9 a.m. local time on Tuesday to consult the public on its proposal to permanently ban the sale and distribution of flavored electronic cigarettes containing nicotine. MDHHS will be open to comment until Friday.
The hearing is the first step in implementing the ban, which has the support of state officials to combat the rise in youth smoking.
MDHHS spokesman Lynn sutfin told the metropolitan times: “MDHHS has established permanent administrative regulations prohibiting the sale and promotion of flavored e-cigarettes containing nicotine in the state to protect the health and safety of Michigan, especially our smallest residents. The explosive and unprecedented increase in drug use among young people remains a public health emergency and a national epidemic. “
Governor Gretchen Whitmer issued an executive order in September 2019 to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes in the state, making it the first state in the United States to ban flavored e-cigarettes containing nicotine. But e-cigarette store owners are asking Michigan courts to rule on the ban, arguing that governor Gretchen Whitmer has overstepped his authority by imposing the ban without the approval of state lawmakers. Michigan’s Supreme Court last month rejected the state’s request to reconsider the lower court’s ruling.
When the ban came, severe lung diseases caused by e-cigarettes containing marijuana ingredients broke out in the United States, causing many people to confuse the two issues.
Advocates of e-cigarettes say the ban is in the wrong direction and will have the greatest impact on former smokers who use e-cigarettes to eliminate the habit, which is generally considered to be less harmful. They also said that the state has no right to impose a ban without legislative approval.
The ban is likely to fail in court.
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