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.
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.