Cannabis Control Commission Head Orders Quarantine On Marijuana Vaping Products
BOSTON (CBS/AP) — One type of medical marijuana product is now exempt from Massachusetts' four-month vaping materials ban.
Suffolk Superior Court Judge Douglas Wilkins ruled a week ago that marijuana cultivated for medical use must be exempted from Republican Gov. Charlie Baker's ban starting Tuesday at noon, unless the state Cannabis Control Commission stepped in.
The agency did just that minutes before noon Tuesday, when excutive director Shawn Collins ordered a quarantine on all marijuana vaping products, except for medical-use vaporizers which use raw marijuana flowers. The ban has been lifted on those specific vaporizers only. That's because, according to the Boston Globe, they have not been linked to any illnesses.
All other devices are still banned under Tuesday's ruling from Collins including vape pens, vape cartridges, aerosol products, and inhalers.
The commission is also asking testing labs if they can test for vitamin E acetate, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified as a culprit in vaping-associated lung injuries. The labs currently test for contaminants like heavy metals.
Baker issued his emergency vaping sales ban in September in response to lung illnesses attributed to use of e-cigarette products.
The vaping industry is also challenging the broader ban in court.
(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)