San Francisco Becomes First Major U.S. City To Ban Juuls & E-Cigarettes

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Rhiannon Griffith-Bowman smokes an E-Cigarette at Digital Ciggz on January 28, 2015 in San Rafael, California. The California Department of Public Health released a report today that calls E-Cigarettes a health threat and suggests that they should be regulated like regular cigarettes and tobacco products.
San Francisco's ban on e-cigarette product will go into effect in 2020.

E-cigarettes are continuously growing in popularity, despite horror stories of jaws getting shattered from overheated batteries. Nonetheless, now more than ever smokers are resorting to vape pens under the impression that they're not as harmful as tobacco products. Although that's not entirely true, it's still an alternative for anyone who wants to either quit smoking or not spend as much money on cigarettes. Starting in 2020, the sale of electronic cigarette products in San Francisco will be completely banned. 

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The San Francisco's city's board new ban on e-cigarettes says "no person shall sell or distribute an electronic cigarette to a person in San Francisco." Corner stores and other tobacco shops won't be able to sell the products anymore but there isn't a ban on using the products for people 21 and over. 

"This is a decisive step to help prevent another generation of San Francisco children from becoming addicted to nicotine," said City Attorney Dennis Herrera in a statement to CNN. Health experts have said the move to ban the products is also an effort made in place due to the FDA's lack of effort in regulating vape pens. 

The interesting part about this ban is that one of the leading e-cigarette brands, Juul, has its headquarters situated in San Francisco. Their spokesperson Ted Kwong argued against the ban. "This full prohibition will drive former adult smokers who successfully switched to vapor products back to deadly cigarettes, deny the opportunity to switch for current adult smokers, and create a thriving black market instead of addressing the actual causes of underage access and use," he said. 


About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.
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