PennLive Op-Ed: Pennsylvania needs an honest conversation on tobacco harm reduction and vaping

By Amanda Wheeler

Sometimes the loudest voice isn’t the most responsible when it comes to public health. And we can all agree that it is important to get the facts when making a decision that will impact the health and wellness of ourselves and our families. As Pennsylvanians discuss tobacco and e-cigarettes, we must make more room for the stories of thousands of people like myself who were able to turn to vaping to quit smoking traditional cigarettes.

My story is like that of so many Pennsylvania adults who have used this harm reduction method to gradually wean themselves off cigarettes and quit smoking altogether. While the path to quitting smoking is different for everyone, it is important for us to have an honest conversation about the importance of vaping products when it comes to providing adults with safer options.

Some people argue that banning flavored vaping products and raising taxes will make them less appealing to young people and curb adult use. The truth is, this approach doesn’t work and actually does more to undermine public health by driving up youth smoking rates, eliminating an important harm reduction tool for adult smokers who want to quit, and fueling the illicit market. In fact, a recent study published by the American Medical Association found that when San Francisco banned flavored vaping products young people were twice as likely to smoke cigarettes compared to cities without a flavor ban.

As a mother, I share the same concerns of many Pennsylvania parents when it comes to keeping tobacco and vaping products out of the hands of young people. That is why my organization supports strong public health and education campaigns that have reduced youth vaping around the country by nearly 60 percent, according to the CDC’s Youth Tobacco Survey. This is evidence that we don’t need to prevent adults who want to quit cigarettes from using these smoke-free products if we take the time to discourage and prevent young people from using them.

Local bans and tax hikes also make our communities less safe by funding criminal enterprises that are more than willing to meet demand when legitimate products are harder to get. In Massachusetts, a ban on menthol cigarettes and flavored vape products resulted in an influx of illicit products, including from a Pennsylvania-based smuggling network.