OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Health officials are scrambling after growing concerns about the safety of vaping.
At least nine people are dead and 500 others have been hospitalized because of illnesses linked to vaping. Massachusetts issued a four-month ban on all vaping products and this week, Centers for Disease Control officials testified they do not know what's causing the illnesses.
Here in Omaha, CHI Health has confirmed at least five cases of vaping illnesses at area hospitals, and most are either teens or young adults. A lung doctor tells 3 News Now that everyone should stop vaping until more information is known.
"I would say that what we're dealing with now would demonstrate that the vaping products that are out on the market. Right now, there's not something that I could say there's a safe alternative." Dr. Doug Moore said, Pulmonary and Critical Care specialist.
Moore says more research is needed to figure out why there's been a recent uptick in vaping-related illnesses.
Earlier this month, a survey showed Nebraska near the lower end of the country in vape rates.
