如果获得通过,S 1353:“防止向青少年邮寄电子烟的在线销售法”将禁止美国邮政总局运送电子烟产品,并迫使其他送货服务在送货时检查ID并获得成人签名。联邦快递,UPS或DHL的递送已经比邮件递送贵得多,因此,除了麻烦之外,在递送时要求的签名也将增加额外的费用。
由FedEx,UPS或DHL进行的递送已经比邮件递送贵得多,将产生多达30美元的额外费用。
如果该法案生效,在线购买电子烟的成本可能会增加30美元。另外,要求成人签名会带来自身的困难,因为大多数交付是在大多数电子烟民工作时间进行的。此外,美国电子烟协会(AVA)主席Gregory Conley指出,签名要求将产生不必要的接触点,这不利于当前的冠状病毒传播。
当然,所有这些因素都可能导致某些私人承运人决定停止运输电子烟产品,并且一旦USPS停止交付,反电子烟实体甚至可能直接或间接地迫使这些公司停止交付产品。
预计特朗普不会反对该法案,众议院将在7月30日之前对该法案进行投票。这使电子烟民有两个星期的时间来发送他们对该法案的评论。消费者无烟替代品倡导者协会(CASAA)敦促烟民采取行动,并通过发送此消息反对法案。
美国研究:对电子烟的依赖性明显低于对香烟的依赖性
同时,随着美国不断收紧电子烟法规,最近的另一项研究分析了3013-3016年烟草与健康人口评估(PATH)研究数据,发现与吸烟相比,使用电子烟与降低尼古丁依赖性始终相关。
这项名为“美国成年人跨部门研究对电子烟和香烟的依赖”的研究比较了当前和以前成年人电子烟使用者的电子烟和香烟依赖。分析了一个以人群为基础的代表性样本的答案,该样本由13311名18岁以上的美国成年人组成,这些成年人已经接受了香烟和/或电子烟的依赖性评估。
研究人员发现,目前电子烟民对电子烟的依赖仍然比香烟的要少。 “在当前使用者中,包括子香烟和香烟双重使用者、不同组的电子香烟使用者和吸烟者以及每种产品的每日和非每日用户中,对电子烟的依赖性显着低于对香烟的依赖性。”
这些发现再次表明,美国应将重点放在与可燃烟草而不是电子烟有关的严格法规上。
US Mail Vape Ban Passes the Senate
If passed, S 1353: “Preventing online Sales of E-Cigarettes to Children Act,” would ban shipments of vape products by the US Postal Service and would force other delivery services to check ID and get an adult signature at the point of delivery. Deliveries by FedEx, UPS or DHL are already much more expensive than mail delivery, so besides the extra hassle, the required signature at delivery will also add additional cost.
Deliveries by FedEx, UPS or DHL, which are already much more expensive than mail delivery, would incur extra charges of as much as $30.
If the bill goes into effect, the cost of an online vaping purchase could increase by as much as $30. Additionally, requiring an adult signature would present its own difficulties since most deliveries happen during business hours when most vapers are at work. Moreover, points out Gregory Conley the president of the American Vaping Association (AVA), the signature requirement would create unnecessary points of contact that are counterproductive to the current coronavirus distancing situation.
Of course all these factors could lead to some private carriers deciding to stop shipping vaping products, and these companies may even be directly or indirectly pressured by anti-vaping entities to stop delivering the products, once the USPS discontinues their deliveries.
Trump is not expected to oppose the bill and the House is expected to cast their vote on the bill by July 30th. This gives vapers two weeks to send their comments about the bill. The Consumer Advocates For Smoke-Free Alternatives Association (CASAA) is urging vapers to take action and speak up against the bill by sending this message.
US study: Dependence on e-cigs is significantly lower than dependence on cigarettes
Meanwhile, as the US keeps tightening e-cig regulations, another recent study analyzing data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study from 3013-3016, found that e-cigarettes use was consistently associated with lower nicotine dependence than cigarette smoking.
The study titled, “Dependence on E-Cigarettes and Cigarettes in a Cross-Sectional Study of US Adults”, compared e-cig and cigarette dependence AMOng current and former adult e-cigarette users. The answers of a population-based representative sample of 13,311 18+ US adults, who had been administered dependence assessments for cigarettes and/or e-cigarettes were analysed.
The researchers found that current vapers were still less dependent on e-cigarettes than on cigarettes. “Findings among current users, dependence on e-cigarettes was significantly lower than dependence on cigarettes, in within-subjects comparisons among dual users of both e-cigarettes and cigarettes , and in separate groups of e-cigarette users and cigarette smokers, and among both daily and non-daily users of each product.”
These findings indicate once again that the US should be focusing on tightening regulations pertaining to combustible tobacco, not electronic cigarettes