The office of Gov. Jay Inslee has amended an erroneous quote it ran from state Secretary of Health John Wiesman last week. Weisman was originally quoted in Inslee’s e-cigarette data press release as saying, “Many kids believe e-cigarettes are safer, but scientific evidence suggests they are not.” The quote was criticized as misleading by vaping advocates including Dr. Michael Siegel, professor of public health at the University of Boston School of Public Health, and longtime worker in the field of tobacco control.
Dr. Wiesman’s quote has since been amended. It now reads, “Many kids believe e-cigarettes are safe, but scientific evidence suggests they are not.” The dust-up over the extra ‘r’ appears to have been a simple typo or miscommunication, but the American Vaping Association was quick to point out that Gov. Inslee’s office did not publicly announce the typo. The association praised the change.
Gov. Inslee’s data and quotes related to the safety of e-cigarettes can be found here. A Crosscut story that quoted Wiesman has been updated to reflect the change.
