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N.Y. health officials vote to ban flavored e-cigarettes, products

By Danielle Haynes

Sept. 17 (UPI) -- New York health officials on Tuesday voted to implement Gov. Andrew Cuomo's executive order banning the sale of flavored e-cigarette products.

The Public Health and Health Planning Council said the ban, which goes into effect Tuesday, is meant to combat the sale of e-cigarettes and nicotine e-liquids that have flavors that could appeal to children.

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"It is undeniable that vaping companies are deliberately using flavors like bubblegum, Captain Crunch and cotton candy to get young people hooked on e-cigarettes -- it's a public health crisis and it ends today," Cuomo said.

"New York is not waiting for the federal government to act, and by banning flavored e-cigarettes we are safeguarding the public health and helping prevent countless young people from forming costly, unhealthy and potentially deadly life-long habits."

New York Health Commissioner Howard Zucker said the state also would consider banning menthol-flavored e-cigarette products.

The action comes amid a rise in lung illnesses and deaths doctors are linking to vaping products, though they're not certain what specifically is to blame. State and federal health officials say an oil extract from vitamin E may have played a role in the respiratory problems.

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Last week the Trump administration also said it will impose a ban on non-tobacco flavored e-cigarette products with a plan to eliminate "unauthorized" products from the market.

"While I like the vaping alternative to cigarettes, we need to make sure this alternative is safe for all!" Trump wrote on Twitter on Friday. "Let's get counterfeits off the market and keep young children from vaping."

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