Read articles from United States of America

July 01, 2021 by usatoday.com

With the Democrats in full control of Congress and the White House, the odds for real cannabis reform, such as full federal legalization, have never been higher. For years, cannabis has delivered a strong track record of creating jobs, tax revenue, and restorative justice in communities disproportionately affected by the War on Drugs. It’s also been hugely popular with the American people, where more than 91% of adults are in favor of legalizing cannabis for either medical or adult recreational use.

And yet, despite all this, there has hardly been any momentum at the federal level to legalize cannabis – until now, that is.

July 01, 2021 by pmi.com

Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) announced today it has entered into an agreement to acquire Fertin Pharma A/S (Fertin Pharma), a leading developer and manufacturer of innovative pharmaceutical and well-being products based on oral and intra-oral delivery systems, for an enterprise value of DKK 5.1 billion (approximately USD 820 million1). “The acquisition of Fertin Pharma will be a significant step forward on our journey toward delivering a smoke-free future—enhancing our smoke-free portfolio, notably in modern oral, and accelerating our progress in beyond nicotine,” stated Jacek Olczak, Chief Executive Officer. [...]

July 01, 2021 by filtermag.org

On June 29, the Washington, DC Council voted to ban the sale of flavored tobacco products—a designation that includes vapes as well as menthol cigarettes. The legislation now heads to the desk of DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, who has signaled her support for the ban and will likely sign it into law. Council members debated at some length, mainly about the concern of potentially increasing the number of interactions between police officers and people of color. They ultimately passed the ban, however, with a vote of 8 to 5. (The bill exempts hookah bars.)

June 30, 2021 by time.com

Juul Labs reached a $40 million settlement with North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein this week, agreeing to limit its sales and marketing practices to quell underage use of its potent e-cigarettes.

The settlement is also part of an “ongoing effort to reset our company and its relationship with our stakeholders” and “earn trust through action,” as a Juul spokesperson put it in a statement. In other words: Juul is trying to shed its reputation as the company that fueled a youth vaping epidemic, and it’s willing to pay $40 million to do it.

June 29, 2021 by washingtontimes.com

Earlier this month, a disturbing incident of over-policing on the boardwalk of Ocean City, Maryland was caught on video. Police tasered a Black teenager and arrested at least two others for vaping in violation of a city public smoking ban. Regardless of what one thinks of the law’s merit, the cops’ draconian enforcement points to a larger problem with modern policing: Minor offenses too often escalate into dangerous, and even deadly, incidents.

June 16, 2021 by netdoctor.co.uk

Everyone knows that smoking is bad for your health, but it’s easy to presume that if you only smoke a little, or in social situations, then the risks won’t be as high. According to research by Dr Pallavi Balte and Dr Elizabeth Oelsner at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, the risk of lung cancer death for ‘social smokers’ – those who only smoke when with other people who are smoking – is not significantly lower than those who smoke more than 20 cigarettes a day.

June 11, 2021 by fox5ny.com

Less than two months after the state legalized recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older, the New York City Department of Health has reportedly warned doctors about a concerning increase of youths smoking pot.

[...] DOH Chief Medical Officer Michelle Morse warned almost 1 in 5 students admit to smoking weed — a trend closely followed by e-cigarettes.

"A lot of them have shifted over to weed, just smoking pot," Dr. Cathy Ward, a pediatrician with Big Apple Pediatrics said. "And a lot of them were smoking e-cigarettes and hookah and Juul. I think its availability is been appealing to them. [...]

June 11, 2021 by toledoblade.com

A return to normalcy could bring a pre-pandemic crisis — youth vaping — back to a boiling point, experts fear, even as conflicting studies paint different pictures of how coronavirus affected everyday usage during lockdowns, particularly among teens.

Data from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released last December that e-cigarette use among American youths was down 25 percent during state-imposed shutdowns has been presented in public-health circles as a tiny silver lining to come out of a pandemic that ranks in the top 10 among human history’s worst plagues.

June 10, 2021 by healthday.com

Although the number of teens who use e-cigarettes has dropped significantly, new research suggests that vaping rates are still too high.

"This study underscores that flavored e-cigarettes, especially JUUL, have caused the epidemic of youth e-cigarette use and nicotine addiction in the U.S. and shows why the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] and other policymakers must act now to eliminate all flavored e-cigarettes," said Matthew Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

June 10, 2021 by filtermag.org

The FDA has emphatically stated that enforcement of the ban, which may take years to implement given likely legal challenges, will only be targeted at manufacturers and distributors, not individuals in possession of menthol cigarettes. But there is no guarantee, especially given how law enforcement operates in communities of color.

Reflecting the complexity of the issue, the planned menthol ban has sharply divided advocates who would be allies on other issues. [...]