Possible Health Effects of E-Cigarettes Prompt Lawmakers to Seek Ban on Electronic Cigarette Marketing to Minors, Bernstein Liebhard LLP Reports
New York, New York (PRWEB) August 06, 2014 -- As concerns surrounding the possible health consequences associated with E-Cigarettes (http://www.ecigregistry.com/) continue to mount, Bernstein Liebhard notes that 13 Democrats in the U.S. Senate are seeking a ban on the marketing of electronic cigarettes to minors. In a letter sent to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) on August 4th, the lawmakers pointed to research that suggests exposure to electronic cigarette marketing by children aged 12 to17 increased by 256 percent between 2011 and 2013. The letter also cites a study which found that middle and high school students who used E-Cigarettes were more likely to smoke traditional cigarettes and less likely to quit smoking. In addition to a ban on marketing to minors, the Senators also asked the FDA to prohibit online sales of electronic cigarettes, as well as the use of flavorings in these products.*
“Our Firm is in the process of investigating the possible adverse health issues associated with E-Cigarettes. We are not surprised that calls for greater regulation of these products are increasing, especially where children are concerned,” says Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationwide law firm representing the victims of defective drugs, medical devices and consumer products. The Firm urges anyone who allegedly suffered nicotine poisoning, pneumonia, heart attacks, strokes, atrial fibrillation, or congestive heart failure that could be attributable to the use of electronic cigarettes to report their experience to its new E-Cigarette registry as soon as possible.
E-Cigarette Health Concerns
The Senate letter urging the FDA to act comes just days before a public comment period on possible E-Cigarette regulations ends on August 8th. In April, the FDA proposed new rules that would extend its regulatory authority to cover additional products that meet the legal definition of a tobacco product, including electronic cigarettes.** Members of the public who wish to comment electronically may do so at http://www.regulations.gov.
In April, Reuters noted that the number of reports involving serious heart and respiratory problems, as well as burns, nicotine poisoning, and other adverse events made to the FDA involving electronic cigarettes had risen sharply over the past year. Between March 2013 and 2014, the agency logged at least 50 such complaints. The FDA had received roughly the same number of reports during the previous five years combined.***
That same month, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report revealed the number of calls to poison centers involving E-Cigarette liquids containing nicotine rose from one per month in September 2010 to 215 per month in February 2014. Over half of those calls involved young children under age 5, and about 42 percent of the poison calls involved people age 20 and older.****
Bernstein Liebhard LLP is seeking to hear from anyone who may have been harmed by an E-Cigarette, especially those who experienced serious issues involving hospitalizations for nicotine poisoning, burns, heart attack, stroke, atrial fibrillation, or pneumonia. To report a problem to the Firm’s registry, or to learn more about the health questions surrounding electronic cigarettes, please visit Bernstein Liebhard LLP’s website. Reports may also be made directly to the Firm by calling 800-511-5092.
*help.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/?id=ff437b7e-521a-4b9d-ad55-79d62ec8bfd3&groups=Chair, U.S. Senate, August 4, 2014
**fda.gov/TobaccoProducts/Labeling/ucm388395.htm, FDA, April 2014
***reuters.com/article/2014/04/17/us-usa-health-ecigarettes-idUSBREA3G06N20140417, Reuters, April 17, 2014
****cdc.gov/media/releases/2014/p0403-e-cigarette-poison.html, CDC, April 3, 2014
About Bernstein Liebhard LLP
Bernstein Liebhard LLP is a New York-based law firm exclusively representing injured persons in complex individual and class action lawsuits nationwide since 1993. As a national law firm, Bernstein Liebhard LLP possesses all of the legal and financial resources required to successfully challenge billion dollar pharmaceutical and medical device companies. As a result, our attorneys and legal staff have been able to recover more than $3 billion on behalf of our clients. The Firm has been named by The National Law Journal to the Plaintiffs’ Hot List, recognizing the top plaintiffs firms in the country, for the past 12 consecutive years. Bernstein Liebhard LLP is the only firm in the country to be named to this prestigious list every year since it was first published in 2003.
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Contact Information:
Felecia L. Stern, Esq.
Bernstein Liebhard LLP
info(at)consumerinjurylawyers(dot)com
http://www.ecigregistry.com/
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Felecia L. Stern, E-Cigarette Injury Registry, http://www.ecigregistry.com/, +1 800-511-5092, [email protected]
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