PEORIA, Ill. — With the use of vapes and e-cigarettes on the rise with young adults, the Peoria County Board of Health want to add them to the same standard as tobacco use.
Monica Hendrickson, the Public Health Administrator, said members of the board will meet with state representatives.
“Annually the city of Peoria, the county of Peoria, and the Peoria City Health Department coordinate to do a legislative update with state representatives, as well as our local boards and councils to really give them an understanding of what we are seeing and what we would like to see legislatively changed,” Hendrickson said.
Without the products being added to the same standards as tobacco, Hendrickson said they do not have much authority in the matter.
“Smoke-free Illinois is over a decade old, we keep supporting that. Tobacco 21 has also been pushed. But what we want to make sure is that things such as vaping or e-cigarettes, which have high nicotine, which have aerosols with carcinogens and other chemicals,” Hendrickson said. “That the legislation we have currently instatutes include it so that we can fund it, promote it, and put it in the same vein as tobacco.”
During the board meeting Monday night, members also approved a Drug Free Testing Policy.
“We just want to make sure that our policies as in terms of employers, aligns not only to state but even all of those federal guidelines that we have to make sure that we have a drug free workplace,” Hendrickson said.
She said that the legalization of cannabis is new territory, and changes could be made as time goes on.
“We are trying to make sure we have policies that cover us, but we also recognize the fact that as time goes on you’re going to see throughout the state different litigations that might happen that might clean this up further,” Hendricksons said.
It is important, according to Hendrickson, because of federal funding.
“We just want to make sure that we are cognizant so that we are not putting ourselves in financial risk,” Hendrickson said.
