We interrupt your normal schedule of articles to bring you this important headline: Michigan becomes the first state to all-out ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes!  By executive order, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced the ban just yesterday, September 3rd.

According to the executive order, ALL flavored e-liquid and vaping products - including that of mint and menthol, will removed from shelves both in-store and online.  Effective immediately, the ban will last for six months and can be renewed as the State sees fit.  Retailers will have 30 days to sell existing stock.

Governor Whitmer told the Washington Post, "My number one priority is keeping our kids safe and protecting the health of the people of Michigan."  Whitmer is in agreement with the State Department of Health that vaping products constitute a public health emergency; however this ban is not a response to the recent outbreak of lung injuries tied to the illegal sales and distribution of bunk THC oil cartridges.

This particular all-out ban on vaping products did in fact have some precedence.  Earlier this year Governor Whitmer signed a law banning sales of vaping products to minors, making the Michigan the 49th state to pass such a law.  This particular ban went into effect on September 2nd and goes as far as to impose penalties to the minors who purchase and possess said vaping products.

michigan call-to-action

Attention all Michigan residents, the Consumer advocacy group CASAA has issued a call-to-action.  Michigan vapers are encouraged to call the governor's office, and to use CASAA's platform to write to their respective district legislators demanding they challenge the executive order ban.

Flavor bans and other vaping product restrictions are popular among legislators because the number of people that vape are politically active enough to challenge such laws are very small.  On top of that, there is a significant moral panic that has been occurring throughout the country for a number of years that has made electronic cigarettes extremely unpopular among those that do not vape.  Flavor bans are effectively an easy way for politicians to advance the agenda to preserve public health, even if it's at the expense of the adults who are able to legally obtain them and use for their own health.