Researchers expose staggering loophole in new law aimed at protecting children: 'Hooking kids across the nation'

A new bipartisan Pennsylvania law, Act 57, takes aim at unregulated vaping products in a bid to protect children. Before the ink dries on it, though, experts are expressing skepticism that it will be effective at accomplishing its goals.

What's happening?

Spotlight PA revealed that former regulators, industry experts, and academics are questioning the bill due to potential loopholes, insufficient funding, and unintended ripple effects.

One notable target of the bill that critics agree on is protecting kids from unregulated vapes, often from China. Those products pose major health and privacy risks due to dangerous quantities of metals and the potential to expose data. Outside of targeting those products, critics poked holes in the bill.

Jeffrey Drope, a professor at Johns Hopkins, opined that comprehensive bans on flavored products might be more effective. Experts argue that those products target teens and market to them, luring them into becoming nicotine addicts. Lynn Silver of the Public Health Institute agreed wholeheartedly.

"Bans on flavored vapes should be comprehensive and span all nicotine products, cannabis where legal, and hemp, all of which are hooking kids across the nation," Silver said.

Another issue is the implementation of the bill. The attorney general's office is tasked with registering qualified products. However, due to a backlog, many products remain eligible despite pending FDA reviews or denials. The budget allocated for this is significantly less than similar efforts in states like New York.

Industry voices like Tony Abboud of the Vapor Technology Association also argue the law will not reduce the demand for vapes but push consumers to the black market.

Why are steps to combat youth vaping important?

The vaping industry contributes to adverse health outcomes, particularly in youth. Jungmi Jun, a professor at the University of South Carolina, explained that while e-cigarettes pose fewer risks than traditional tobacco, they are far from harmless.

Unregulated vapes pose all sorts of hazards, like exposure to dangerous metals and opioids. Regulated ones, especially if flavored, can be a gateway to smoking cigarettes or becoming a vaping addict. 

Neither of those outcomes is beneficial long-term, and vapes also have separate negative impacts. Disposable vapes exacerbate the environmental crisis through single-use plastics and toxic e-waste, including improperly discarded lithium batteries. 

What's being done about Pennsylvania's Act 57?

Some legislators are hoping to expand the ban to all flavored vapes. So far, those efforts are falling short due to skepticism that they could survive industry opposition. Act 57 is a step in the right direction to at least try to root out illegal products. Time will tell if that will be more of an empty gesture or an effective one in keeping Pennsylvania's teens away from dangerous products.

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