Oregon authorities established new rules on Friday that follow up on an executive order issued by Democratic Gov. Kate Brown on October 4, which called for a statewide ban on flavored nicotine and cannabis vaporizer products, Marijuana Business Daily reports. The ban will take effect starting tomorrow, October 15.
According to Oregon health officials, five of the nine individuals who have fallen ill with the vape-linked pulmonary disease in Oregon had purchased THC vape products from the legal cannabis industry; two of the nine affected patients have died.
Retailers who continue to sell the banned products will receive a written warning and recommendations for becoming compliant before facing civil penalties of up to $500 per day. Cannabis retailers who fail to honor the ban will also run the risk of losing their license, according to Steve Marks, executive director of the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission (OLCC).
Starting October 15, the OLCC will also gain the new ability to require cannabis licensees to send specific product samples over to regulators for testing.
Oregon is the third state to issue a vaporizer ban; Washington recently established a 120-day temporary ban on flavored vaporizer products, while Massachusetts last month approved a more sweeping, four-month ban on all THC and nicotine vape products. Regulators in Colorado, meanwhile, recently proposed stricter rules for THC vape products.
The CDC has released data suggesting that the majority of patients affected by the national, vape-linked pulmonary disease used counterfeit or unregulated cannabis vaporizer products.
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