The Province is Concerned About Vaping

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Published September 18, 2019 at 5:15 pm

vaping

When vaping initially became popular it was due to the fact it was advertised as a safer alternative to smoking. However, due to recent health issues associated with vaping, many people and regulatory groups have begun to question whether it is as safe as it’s perceived to be.

In a statement released today, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, Christine Elliot, said she has become concerned about the potential health-related consequences of vaping, and she believes further research on the subject is required.

“It has become abundantly clear that we do not have access to sufficient data and information to understand the potential scope of this issue,” she said in the statement.

“I am issuing a Minister’s Order under section 77.7.1 of the Health Protection and Promotion Act, which will require public hospitals in Ontario to provide the Chief Medical Officer of Health with statistical, non-identifying information related to incidences of vaping-related severe pulmonary disease,” she added.

In 2018, Doug Ford paused changes to the Smoke-Free Ontario Act in order to give the government enough time to research the effects and consequences of vaping before imposing regulations on it.

According to a recent CNN article, the seventh person in the U.S. has died from vaping-related illnesses, which has caused the Center for Disease Control (CDC) to launch an investigation into 380 cases of lung illnesses associated with vaping across the country.

According to The Ottawa Citizen, Canada’s first confirmed case of a vape-relared lung illness came earlier this month when a London teen was hospitalized and had to be put on life support.

Due to the fact the long-term consequences associated with vaping are largely unknown at this point, coupled with the fact vaping is popular among a much younger demographic compared to smoking, many governing bodies believe it may be time to start imposing more regulations on it, as well as conducting more, thorough research.

This article has been updated from the original version.

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