New York banning most flavored e-cigarettes in emergency order

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"New York is confronting this crisis head-on and today we are taking another nation-leading step to combat a public health emergency," Cuomo said in a statement. "Manufacturers of fruit and candy-flavored e-cigarettes are intentionally and recklessly targeting young people, and today we're taking action to put an end to it. At the same time, unscrupulous stores are knowingly selling vaping products to underage youth -- those retailers are now on notice that we are ramping up enforcement, and they will be caught and prosecuted."

CNN reported that New York state's health commissioner, Dr. Howard Zucker, will have an emergency meeting with the New York Public Health and Health Planning Council to implement the ban. The New York Times reported that the group will then issue an emergency regulation, effective immediately, that will to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes.

"Vaping is dangerous. Period," Cuomo said at a news conference Sunday. "No one can say long-term use of vaping -- where you're inhaling steam and chemicals deep into your lungs -- is healthy."

Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids President Matthew L. Myers was somewhat critical of the move, as menthol flavored e-cigarettes are not included in the ban.

"The evidence is clear that if you leave any flavored e-cigarettes on the market, kids will shift to them," Myers said in a statement, CNN reported. "That has already happened with mint and menthol e-cigarettes in the past year, and it will continue to happen if menthol e-cigarettes are left on the market."

Cuomo told CNN Sunday that menthol e-cigarettes are being evaluated and may be banned in the future.

The New York Times reported that New York is the second state, behind Michigan, to place such a ban on fruity e-cigarette flavors popular with children and teens.