A change to an existing Colorado law goes into effect prohibiting vaping indoors in most public places in El Paso County and the rest of the State.
The change, made by state legislators at the 2019 legislative session, include vaping along with smoking in restrictions already outlined in the Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act. The Colorado Department of Health & Environment (CDPHE) said the change comes as Colorado high school students are vaping twice as much as the national average, noting that, “Evidence shows that strong smoke-free policies reduce the likelihood that young people will start smoking.”
Learn more about the Clean Indoor Air Act expansion here.
The El Paso County Board of Health took a stance in January 2019, signing a resolution declaring teen vaping a “public health crisis” in the County. That action came on the heels of an executive order signed by former Gov. John Hickenlooper in November 2018.
Read more about the Board of Health’s vaping resolution here.
The addition to the Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act increases the distance from 15 to 25 feet outside public entrances where people can smoke or vape, thus further limiting exposure to secondhand smoke. Statewide surveys from the Colorado School of Public Health reveal that the most common areas Coloradoans report “having to put up with” secondhand smoke is outside doorways to buildings.
The new law aims to protect customers and service industry employees from cancer causing chemicals, heavy metals and nicotine found in the aerosol that comes from vaping devices.
For more information from El Paso County Public Health about tobacco use and teen vaping, follow these links to our website.