Rhode Island's ban on sale of flavored e-cigarettes now in effect

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WJAR) — A ban on the sale of flavored e-cigarettes in Rhode Island is now in effect, Department of Health Director Nicole Alexander-Scott announced Friday.

The regulations were issued the week after Gov. Gina Raimondo signed an executive order to get flavored vaping products off store shelves.

It bans the manufacture, distribution, sale, or offer for sale of flavored electronic nicotine-delivery system products in Rhode Island.

"When we say flavored, we mean anything that tastes or smells like anything other than tobacco flavor or unflavored," Alexander-Scott said.

Letters were sent out Friday to all affected businesses notifying them of the regulations, according to Alexander-Scott.

There are between 1,400 to 1,600 businesses in Rhode Island that are licensed to sell vaping products -- about 400 of those strictly sell vaping products.

"We understand sales and businesses wanting to stay afloat. Our focus here is protecting youth," Alexander-Scott said. "E-cigarette use among youth is an epidemic in Rhode Island and across the nation."

Alexander-Scott said about 20 percent of high school students in Rhode Island report regularly using e-cigarettes.

"An example of the significance is the nicotine content of one Juul pod for e-cigarettes is the equivalent of smoking one whole pack of cigarettes," Alexander-Scott said.

Two vaping related illnesses have been reported in Rhode Island.

Dr. Barry Shea, director of the Interstitial Lung Disease Center at Rhode Island Hospital, said the long-term consequences of using e-cigarettes remain unknown.

"There's been no common denominator in all the cases of vaping-related illness so far where we can point to one particular product or one particular additive. But it does certainly seem to be something in the e-cigarette liquid that people are vaping that’s causing injury to the lungs," Shea said.

Many who use e-cigarettes argue it's a safer alternative than smoking cigarettes. The Health Department said it wants to work with those people.

Alexander-Scott said, "We strongly encourage whether you've tried it in the past or not to please use our smoking cessation hotline 1-800-QUIT-NOW."

The regulations do not apply to medical marijuana.

The ban is in place for 120 days and can then be extended for an additional 60 days.