Mayor Lori Lightfoot To Seek Total Ban On Flavored E-Cigarettes In Chicago
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Mayor Lori Lightfoot says the city of Chicago is stepping up efforts to prevent kids from vaping, amid a growing number of deaths and serious illnesses nationwide connected to electronic cigarette use.
"I am committing today to leading an effort to expand the current ban on sales of flavored e-cigarettes and other flavored tobacco products citywide," Lightfoot says.
The U.S. Surgeon General's office says e-cigarette use among high school students is skyrocketing, and can lead to severe lung problems – in some cases, even death.
Monday morning, Lightfoot and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin talked about the dangers of vaping, and what must be done to stop it.
"We've got to convince students, first, that it's a bad idea to vape. We've got to convince their parents that it's not a harmless cloud of smoke around their heads," Durbin said.
In Illinois, there have been 52 confirmed cases of vaping-related lung disease, with 12 more cases under investigation. One person in Illinois has died of a vaping-related illness.
The median age of vaping-related lung disease in Illinois is 22 years old, with the youngest reported victim 15 years old.
The Trump administration says it plans to ban all non-tobacco flavored electronic cigarettes.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo also has announced an emergency order banning flavored e-cigarettes. Cuomo says the order will advance legislation to eliminate deceptive marketing of e-cigarettes to children, and raise the buying age for e-cigarettes from 18 to 21 years old.