[ST. PAUL, MN] – Today, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) reported that two Minnesotans passed away from vaping-related injuries in September. Governor Tim Walz released the following statement in response:

“My heart is with the families, friends, and communities of these two Minnesotans. Seventy-three Minnesotans, who have experienced severe lung injury in this outbreak associated with vaping illegal THC over the past several months, is too many. In addition to these dramatic injuries, we are concerned about the long-term health impacts of vaping. The Administration is launching an aggressive outreach campaign to ensure Minnesotans know the risks of vaping and putting together bold legislative policies to tackle this crisis head on. We must ensure Minnesotans have the information, support, and resources to fight back against those profiting at the expense of our health and well-being.”

Governor Walz is closely monitoring the vaping crisis and ongoing investigation. He received an in-depth briefing on these most recent developments from MDH Commissioner Jan Malcolm and public health experts yesterday. With vaping rates skyrocketing among young people, he has directed the commissioners of health and education to work together to launch an outreach campaign to provide school officials with information and resources to help as they struggle with vaping in schools. This includes conducting informational briefings across the state as well as other activities to get information to parents, students and health care providers to make sure people understand the risks of vaping. This action builds on the departments’ previous work to prevent vaping through a variety of efforts, including a School e-cigarette Toolkit (PDF) that provides resources for school staff working to address the use of vaping products in schools.

Governor Walz has also directed his Administration to determine a set of bold 2020 policy options to combat vaping. The list of legislative options under consideration includes: raising the statewide legal age for tobacco to 21; prohibiting the internet sale of tobacco products, e-cigarettes and vaping products; prohibiting the sale of all flavored nicotine and tobacco products; and providing authority for MDH to declare a public health emergency in critical situations such as this in the future.