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Spike Babaian 1074 Hunter Ave Suite 4 Valley Stream NY, 11580 516 695-7007 |
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The American Lung Association (ALA) has been actively encouraging state bans on the sale of electronic cigarettes (“e-cigarettes”), despite the growing body of evidence indicating that they are a safer alternative to traditional smoking. These actions are contrary to their stated goals of preventing lung disease.
National Vapers Club
Online PR News – 15-May-2010 –The American Lung Association (ALA) has been actively encouraging state bans on the sale of electronic cigarettes (“e-cigarettes”), despite the growing body of evidence indicating that they are a safer alternative to traditional smoking.
According to Spike Babaian, president of National Vapers Club, “We believe the American Lung Association has lost track of its mission by waging a war on a product that has produced nearly a million former smokers.”
In a memorandum in support of proposed legislation (S7234) in New York which would ban all sales of electronic cigarettes, the ALA focuses primarily on concerns that electronic cigarettes are marketed to children. “For this reason,” said Babaian, “it is particularly disturbing that ALA deliberately refuses to support legislation aimed at preventing the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors.”
In February of this year, at a Utah House Health and Human Services Committee meeting, Rep. Phil Riesen of Utah, said “I've been sitting here contemplating whether or not we should propose banning electronic cigarettes, and I'm hearing a lot of testimony from folks who say that it's helping them stop smoking,” and he went on to say, “I don't think we ought to ban them anymore than we should ban Nicorette or patches or anything that is helping people to quit.”
Subsequently, a different version of the bill which only banned sales to minors was passed.
Recently, in Illinois, at a Health Committee hearing on S3174, legislation to ban sales of electronic cigarettes, representatives of the Midwest Vapers Group expressed their concern over the possibility they might return to smoking cigarettes if this alternative was taken away from them.
The chairperson and cosponsor of the bill, Rep. Naomi Jakobsson, asked of Marlow Colvin, the sponsor of the bill, “With all that we've heard today, would you be willing to amend the bill to have regulations that it wouldn't be sold to minors?” Rep. Colvin said he'd have to defer to Kathy Drea, the lobbyist for the American Lung Association, who was seated next to him. Ms. Drea refused to amend the bill, and it subsequently died in committee. As a result, there is no law prohibiting the sales of e-cigarettes to minors in the state of Illinois.
The ALA appears to be so dedicated to denying adults a choice, they are willing to sacrifice opportunities to ban youth access, as set forth in their policy statement dated April 9th, 2010, “Bans on the sale of e-cigarettes should prohibit all sales and avoid including e-cigarettes in youth access laws.”
Elaine Keller of CASAA (www.CASAA.org) says, “We can’t understand why the ALA would work so hard to prevent smoking abstinence.”
Dr. Siegel suggests an answer to that concern in his blog (http://www.tobaccoanalysis.blogspot.com/), “The American Lung Association's actual position is that it supports smoking cessation, but only if the smoker quits by virtue of pharmaceutical products, not if the smoker quits using electronic cigarettes.
“Perhaps the ALA's position is not surprising given the tremendous amount of pharmaceutical company support that it receives. In the second quarter of 2009 alone, the American Lung Association received more than $1.5 million from Pfizer, manufacturer of Chantix and Nicotrol. Moreover, Pfizer is a sponsor of the Lung Association's Freedom from Smoking program.”
The American Lung Association’s mission statement mandates that it works to “save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through Education, Advocacy and Research.”
Spike Babaian says, “It’s about time they return to their original intentions of preventing lung disease rather than being concerned with what method people use to achieve that goal.”
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