Kaiser Permanente announces support for legislation banning flavored tobacco, Gov. Newsom's youth vaping prevention efforts

OAKLAND, Calif., Feb. 5, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Taking a strong stand to protect the health and safety of California's youth, Kaiser Permanente today announced it is the first major health care provider to support California Senate Bill 793 by state Senator Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, to ban the sale of all flavored tobacco products in the state.

Under SB 793, flavored tobacco products include menthol cigarettes, flavored chewing tobacco products, and many vaping products.

"Flavors are proven starter products for youth and have no place on the market whatsoever," said Bechara Choucair, MD, senior vice president and chief community health officer for Kaiser Permanente. "Kid-friendly flavors mask the poison, entice kids to experiment with tobacco products and potentially addict them for life."

The Food and Drug Administration reports that 70% of youth e-cigarette users cited appealing flavors as the primary reason for use; and according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 4 high school students are current e-cigarette users, a rate that has more than doubled in the last two years. Even more alarming is the rise in e-cigarette use among middle school students, which has tripled since 2017.

The most current update from the California Department of Public Health shows that 199 vaping-related lung illnesses and four deaths have been reported in California since fall 2019. Dozens of young people have been admitted to intensive care units and even required mechanical ventilation.

For many years, Kaiser Permanente health care providers have routinely cautioned patients, especially youth and their parents and guardians, about the harmful effects of nicotine products, which include:

• Risk of life-long addictions and an increased likelihood of becoming a smoker of traditional cigarettes.
• Potential for serious and even fatal damage to lungs.
• Harm to brain development.
• Other unknown long-term risks.

"As health care professionals at Kaiser Permanente, we are proud to work for an organization that supports this stand against flavored tobacco products," said Renee Fogelberg, MD, Kaiser Permanente Northern California Adult Clinical Lead Tobacco Cessation, The Permanente Medical Group. "The more than 15,000 flavors available on the market today have enticed our youth and fooled others into thinking these items are safe. They effectively created a new generation of smokers, turning back the progress that has been made in the last few decades." 

Kaiser Permanente today also offered its continued support to efforts by Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration to curb the use of vaping products by youth altogether.

"Kaiser Permanente applauds Governor Newsom's commitment to ban flavored tobacco products in the state by January 2021, his recent actions to make public health alerts and inform consumers, and newly proposed actions to further curb e-cigarette use by minors," Choucair said. "We are honored to join the broad coalition of advocates for these efforts, including physicians, advocacy groups and public health organizations, who are all committed to reversing this troubling and preventable threat to the lives of 9 million California young people."

About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America's leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 12.2 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health.

For more information, contact:
Marc Brown, [email protected]

SOURCE Kaiser Permanente

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