Stricter Smoking Ban in the U.S.: Los Angeles Prohibits E-Cigarette Use

China E-Cigarette News reported, citing Bloomberg Businessweek on February 25, that after New York and Chicago, Los Angeles will become the third major U.S. city to ban smoking next week. It is reported that this move not only prohibits smoking conventional cigarettes in public places, but also includes e-cigarettes within the scope of the smoking ban. The ordinance passed by the Los Angeles City Council on the 24th covers almost all forms of public space, including bars, restaurants, workplaces, farmers markets, beaches, parks, and city golf courses. According to the Los Angeles Times, the measure does not cover “smoking lounges,” where consumers can specifically try different electronic tobacco products and devices. The Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office said that more than 40 cities and counties in the state have already made similar changes by adding e-cigarettes to their bans. Smoking has now become socially isolated, remaining only in private homes. Megan McArdle said in a recent cover story for Bloomberg Businessweek that federal regulation is also beginning to take shape, because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not yet determined whether electronic cigarettes can truly help relieve nicotine dependence. In the lengthy preamble to the Los Angeles ordinance, lawmakers made the focus of their debate clear: “Electronic cigarettes have not been scientifically proven safe.” They wrote that public use could “undermine the established social norm that ‘smoking is not allowed.’”