Vaping: A look at the health effects and insurance implications of Vaping.

AuthorGabay, Sari

The rise in vaping-related deaths and illnesses has ushered in a new awareness of the negative effects of electronic cigarettes or "e-cigarettes."

Entering the market in the early 2000s, e-cigarettes gained global traction in 2014 and have steadily risen in popularity. Earlier this year, several people were hospitalized with a mysterious lung illness attributed to vaping and e-cigarettes. Since then, the numbers have risen steadily with the CDC reporting 805 confirmed cases of lung injury related to vaping. At the time of this article, 17 people have died due to vape-related illness. As a result of this, President Trump has pushed for a ban on certain flavored e-cigarette pods and cartridges. States have followed suit, calling for a temporary ban on these products. Although commonly viewed as a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes, we are now seeing some of the health consequences, and as more is understood about e-cigarettes, vaping, and Juuling", we can expect changes in the health and life insurance industry.

By way of background, according to a recent report by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), conventional tobacco use has declined significantly among youth and young adults. However, e-cigarettes have been on the rise and offer a new, arguably trendier way to consume nicotine. The use of e-cigarettes is often referred to as vaping based on the mechanism used to deliver the nicotine into the body. E-cigarettes produce an aerosol by heating a liquid that usually contains nicotine, flavorings, and other chemicals that help to make the aerosol which users then inhale. Although e-cigarettes come in a variety of shapes, each contains a heating element and place to hold liquid. Juul has become one of the most popular vaping products on the market and the company at the center of this ban. When the company Juul emerged in commerce in 2017, it gained traction through its discreet shape and size as well as its flavor options. Juul pods, the liquid that is turned into vapor, come in flavors that often appeal to young users like mango, creme brulee and watermelon. Though originally marketed as the safer option to conventional cigarette use and a helpful means to quitting cigarettes, new companies like Juul have pounced on the opportunity to appeal to new customers, namely teens. A CDC survey from 2017 reported that nearly seven million people over the age of 18 use e-cigarettes. Another report exposed that an estimated 2.1 million middle...

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