%A Ravi Choudhuri
%T Improving Pennsylvania health policy regarding electronic cigarettes
%X Electronic cigarettes (i.e. e-cigarettes) are battery-powered devices that deliver nicotine and other additives such as flavoring in an aerosolized form to an individual. Although originally developed as a smoking cessation device, e-cigarettes are currently marketed as an alternative to tobacco use. There has been a sharp increase nationwide in the use of e-cigarettes in recent years?particularly among adolescents. This is of particular concern because of the adverse health effects of nicotine on adolescent development. Currently, forty of the fifty states prohibit the sales of e-cigarettes to minors. Pennsylvania is one of the ten states that do not restrict youth access to e-cigarettes. The purpose of this master?s essay is to present an argument for the regulation of e-cigarettes in Pennsylvania. In order to achieve this goal, I reviewed the current literature on: the health consequences of e-cigarette use, attitudes and intentions of youth toward e-cigarette use and the policy issues related to the regulation of this product. As a result of this review, I have proposed a strategy for the development of an e-cigarette policy for Pennsylvania. The first step in this strategy involves gathering information from policy makers in order to determine their knowledge of: e-cigarettes, current regulations governing e-cigarettes and their thoughts on the need for future policy in this domain. It is necessary for policy makers to have accurate knowledge and an in-depth understanding of e-cigarette issues in order to inform the development of policies that will protect the health of Pennsylvania residents. This is the public health significance of this study.
%D 2015
%K Pennsylvania, Health, Policy, Electronic, Cigarettes
%I University of Pittsburgh
%L pittir24565