(Annapolis, MD)
:
Today, the Maryland House of Delegates voted in favor of
HB 3
, legislation that addresses the sale of flavored tobacco products in Maryland. This bill has been weakened with amendments, leaving many products on the market that are addicting youth in the state. Although the bill removes many products, those left will allow the youth tobacco epidemic to continue.
Several members of the Maryland Tobacco-Free Coalition, including the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Lung Association, Parents Again Vaping e-Cigarettes (PAVe),
and Maryland PIRG
issued the following statement in response to the bill’s passage:
“The goal of this legislation was to protect Maryland kids from tobacco addiction and stop the exploitation of communities of color by removing all flavored tobacco products from the market, including e-cigarettes, menthol cigarettes, hookah, smokeless tobacco, and flavored cigars. The current version of the bill leaves out the most impactful action the Maryland legislature can take to address the worsening tobacco epidemic: Ending the sale of all flavored tobacco products, regardless of their delivery method or place of purchase.
Exempting refillable e-cigarette devices—also known as open systems—from this legislation sets a terrible precedent and undermines the foundation of the original legislation to keep tobacco out of the hands of kids. After Juul, Smok and Suorin—open system devices now exempt from the legislation—are the most popular e-cigarette among high school students today. By allowing the sale of these products to continue, kids will find a way to obtain them from non-compliant retailers. Entirely removing these products from the market as part of a comprehensive strategy is the only way to effectively curb their use by Maryland’s youth.
The bill also creates an entirely new smoking bar industry in Maryland that allows the indoor use of tobacco products and threatens the Clean Indoor Air Act.
If lawmakers are serious about reversing the youth tobacco epidemic, closing the many loopholes in the Trump Administration’s policy, and ending the tobacco industry’s long and lethal history of targeting kids and other vulnerable groups with flavored products, they must do better than this bill.
We urge the Maryland Senate to move forward with and approve their version of this legislation (
SB 233
), a clean bill without any exemptions that will negatively impact public health, and encourage their house colleagues to concur.”
