By John Lovick and Jared Mead / For The Herald
During a recent coffee chat with constituents, we were struck by a statement from a high school student. She said vaping was on the rise and much harder to spot than smoking cigarettes, since vaping devices look like small USB drives and can be odorless.
That student’s account is backed up by hard numbers: 1 out of 6 sophomores in high school smokes cigarettes or uses vape pens.
Every one of those students is someone’s son or daughter — and the younger someone starts using tobacco, the more harm is done to their brain development and health. Starting young also makes it harder to quit.
To help tackle this problem, we passed the Tobacco 21 law (House Bill 1074), a bipartisan bill that raised the age to purchase tobacco and vaping products to 21.
There’s growing evidence that vaping isn’t just a danger to kids who aren’t old enough to legally purchase tobacco.
Recent reports from hospitals around the country show that vaping has led to serious and sudden lung disease and deaths, possibly caused by an oil contained in vaping liquids.
Due to the growing number of deaths, the state of Massachusetts recently placed a temporary ban on all vaping product sales.
While doctors and scientists investigate why this is happening, we believe our top priority is making sure the children of Washington state aren’t harmed from vaping or otherwise becoming addicted to tobacco while they’re still in school.
Doing so will take teamwork from teachers, parents, fellow students and retailers where tobacco and vaping products are sold.
First, we have to address the myth that vaping is safe, that it’s not really smoking. Like smoking cigarettes, vaping means using tobacco and inhaling nicotine and a number of other chemicals.
Unlike tobacco, vaping apparently also poses additional, more immediate risks.
Second, we need to cut off teens from getting vaping devices and tobacco. That means attacking social sharing — older people who can legally buy tobacco letting teenagers have access.
Testimony in the House and Senate shows that most teens get tobacco and vapor products from social sources and from those who are age 18 to 20.
We also need to recognize where social sharing typically happens. It’s common for students to meet in school restrooms where they share vaping devices.
Third, we need to make sure retailers don’t break the law by selling to teens. The new law makes it a gross misdemeanor to sell vaping and tobacco products to anyone under the age of 21.
Fourth, we need to educate students, parents and teachers about the law. Any person under 21 who buys, possesses or attempts to obtain tobacco or vaping products is now committing a class 3 civil infraction, subject to a $50 fine, up to four hours of community restitution and participation in a smoking cessation program.
Finally, we have to work together so teachers, parents and family members can recognize vaping devices for what they are and make sure kids aren’t smoking at school or at home.
As parents ourselves, we recognize that high school students tend to think of themselves as invincible. Smoking and vaping may not seem like a big deal to them.
Parents, teachers and family members who are concerned about the health of our students need to recognize vaping as a real threat to the health of children — a threat that laws alone won’t fix.
If we work together, we can protect our students from becoming addicted and harmed by the new generation of tobacco.
Rep. John Lovick, D-Mill Creek, is the acting Speaker of the House and a retired Washington State Trooper. Rep. Jared Mead, D-Mill Creek, serves on the Transportation, Environment & Energy and College & Workforce Development Committees. Both serve the 44th Legislative District.
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