The Lincolnwood Village Board voted unanimously Tuesday to ban the use of e-cigarettes and other vaping products in indoor public places.
The move prohibits vaping at any place where smoking is already prohibited, such as in workplaces, restaurants and bars, adding Lincolnwood to a list of cities including Chicago and more than a dozen suburbs that have passed similar restrictions on the use of e-cigarettes amid growing concern over their health impacts.
There have been more than 2,600 hospitalizations from lung injury cases linked to e-cigarette use across the U.S. since March, with 60 deaths, including five in Illinois, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Illinois Department of Public Health.
The Lincolnwood board passed the new ordinance without discussion this week, though at an October meeting, Police Chief Jason Parrott had addressed health risks associated with vaping. Although no single cause has been found behind vaping-related illnesses, the CDC says patients in most cases have reported using products containing tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis.
“It’s very hard to detect that,” Parrott said during the Board’s Oct. 2 committee meeting. “I know that police personnel have come into contact with people e-smoking a product with THC. Some you can smell, and some are disguised very, very well.”
Using e-cigarettes was already prohibited in Lincolnwood’s public parks and on sidewalks or other public ways used by bicyclists or pedestrians.
The ordinance approved Tuesday amends the Village Code by adding e-cigarettes to the existing ban on the sale of tobacco products to those under 21, as stipulated under state law.
In July, Illinois became the first Midwestern state to raise the legal age for purchasing tobacco products – including e-cigarettes – from 18 to 21. The new law also eliminated penalties for underage possession of tobacco products.
But Lincolnwood’s new ordinance prohibits possession of e-cigarettes for those under 18, matching the village’s ban on possession of any tobacco products for people under 18.
“We can’t legislate against adults if they want to do something, even if it’s bad for themselves,” said Trustee Craig Klatzco during the October meeting. “But we can legislate to prevent it from getting into the hands of children. That is our responsibility.”
Lincolnwood’s indoor e-cigarette ban comes as regulators and lawmakers weigh restrictions on flavored vaping products, which are heavily are marketed to teenagers.
