The vaping community (e-cigarettes) is being called to arms to turn out in force at the Erie County Legislature on Monday (Jan. 26) for a late afternoon hearing on a proposed law to limit the use of e-cigarettes in the county.
Victor Canestraro, owner of Perfection Vapes in Depew, has urged members of the vaping community and his clients to express their views at the public hearing on a law that while not totally restrictive would nonetheless cast vaping in the same health-risk category as tobacco cigarettes, something he believes is just not the case.
Canestraro is also concerned with bills being introduced in Albany that would ban the sale of e-liquid to adults, saying “prohibitionists in the New York Senate want to make it a crime for a business to sell e-liquid” to adults, urging supporters to help stop action in the Assembly or with the governor.
In a posting on Facebook, Perfection Vapes argues “as a company we believe that electronic cigarettes are a smarter alternative for smokers to traditional cigarettes. We oppose measures that would punish adult consumers for making that smarter choice. We hope that you would take this opportunity to educate your lawmakers that e-liquid products are a positive both for the New York economy and the welfare of smokers looking for an alternative. As a consumer of electronic cigarettes, you know better than most that these products are NOT tobacco, are nothing like combustible cigarettes, and that the cost and full access to them are important to you.”
While the medical community is still assessing e-cigarettes, many experts believe there are benefits for smokers and Michael Siegel, MD, MPH, a professor at Boston University’s School of Public Health said if smokers can’t quit tobacco “I think they would be a lot better off with e-cigarettes. They’re a safer alternative.”
Legislator Lynne Dixon (I-Dist. 9) is chairman of the legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee and she met with Canestraro last week to hear his concerns about the proposed law that will be the subject of Monday’s hearing.
Canestraro, who appeared on WKBW Radio’s Let’s Talk Native on Sunday night with host John Kane, is a strong believer in the positive benefits of vaping and is expected to lead the contingent from the vaping community at Monday’s public hearing.
People interested in learning more about e-cigarettes and the movement toward regulation should attend Monday’s hearing (4 p.m.) and hear the concerns of those in the vaping community about the effort to restrict their use which they believe is being driven by the fear of competition from the big three tobacco makers.
|
