Arkansas lawmakers discuss teen vaping, hear testimony on ways to combat growing epidemic
LITTLE ROCK (KATV) — Members of the Arkansas House & Senate Public Health, Welfare & Labor committees appear to be in agreement that there's concern about teen vaping, but many appear to be split on what to do about the issue.
Lawmakers heard from health advocates and a school official, urging legislators to act on the issue of teen vaping.
"We have lost control of trying to discipline this out of our schools," said Dr. Debbie Jones, EdD, superintendent of schools for the city of Bentonville.
Jones showed off a handful of the JUUL's and e-cigarettes that had been confiscated from students in her district, claiming usage among teens in Bentonville schools have skyrocketed.
According to data compiled by the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement that was presented on Monday, 44-percent of Arkansas high school seniors said they have tried an e-cigarette product - 1 in 5 high school seniors were reportedly habitual users.
Arkansas Secretary of Health, Dr. Nathaniel Smith, updated legislators on the six acute pulmonary diseases with possible links to vaping currently under investigation in the state. Five of the six cases required hospitalization, four were male, and all displayed a similar clinical picture.
Smith admitted there is still plenty of research to be done, however the initial evidence being shown about the dangers of vaping are alarming.
"There's no single substance or e-cigarette that's been consistently associated with illness," Smith told lawmakers. "That's an area of active study trying to understand what exactly is causing this."
Senate President Pro Tem Jim Hendren and State Sen. Missy Irvin (R-Mountain Home), announced their intentions for an interim study proposal on a vaping tax, something they attempted to do earlier this year with success in the Senate but the bill died in the House.
Sen. Hendren told reporters that he believes the pressure is building on legislators to do something about the teen vaping epidemic.
"Principals, moms and dads, are getting tired of hearing more and more about this epidemic in their schools, and they want the legislature, the government, to do something about it," said Hendren.
Hendren admits at this point there's certainly no consensus on the issue of taxing e-cigarettes, but that's why he said he wants to have the issue studied further to be able to prove to his colleagues the importance of passing the legislation.
"I think this is the beginning of a process, an educational process," said Hendren.
"This is a very, very controversial subject. There's a lot of power in the tobacco industry to prevent any kind of changes, but I also think there's a lot of good folks in the legislature who want to do what's best for our youth."
Sen. Trent Garner (R-El Dorado) was very vocal about concerns his constituents had about the ability of e-cigarettes to help them kick the habit of smoking actual cigarettes. Garner also had concerns about whether e-nicotine products or THC products were responsible for the current concerns with vaping.
Several speakers, including ACHI President Dr. Joe Thompson, spoke about the one thing that legislators could do to help curb teen vaping without imposing a tax, overturning a 2015 law that prevent municipalities from enacting their own rules regarding vaping.
"Your predecessors took away the authority of any local community to restrict the advertising, marketing and sale of vape products," said Thompson. "So the responsibility for the safety of our youth solely rests with you - no local municipality can take action at this point in time."
Thompson showed how close vaping advertising was to schools here in Arkansas. A convenience store directly across from the Little Rock private school was shown with several advertisements from JUULs.
In a statement released to KATV from Governor Asa Hutchinson regarding today's hearing, he said:
“Vaping by our young people has become a serious issue, and I am grateful for the testimony of Secretary Smith in describing the adverse health consequences of vaping. The key is to reduce usage by our teens, and this starts with education; reducing access and proper monitoring in schools. I have supported a tax on e-cigarettes because e-cigarettes contain nicotine and the product should not have an exemption.”
