Did e-cigarette maker JUUL target kids? 39 states launch joint investigation
E-cigarette maker JUUL is facing more pressure over its marketing practices after 39 states announced a joint investigation into the company Tuesday.
As part of the investigation, officials will look more closely at California-based JUUL Labs’ marketing practices and whether the company targeted kids for its vaping products.
The attorneys general, led by officials in Connecticut, Texas, Florida, Oregon and Nevada, say they are also looking at the company’s claims about nicotine content in their popular e-cigarette devices “and statements regarding risks, safety and effectiveness as a smoking cessation device.”
In a statement, JUUL said it had dropped flavored products except for menthol and tobacco flavors and “we do not intend to attract underage users.”
“We have an epidemic of underaged vaping, not just in Florida, but nationwide,” Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody said in a statement. “As Florida’s Attorney General and a mother, I cannot sit on the sidelines while this public health epidemic grows, and our next generation becomes addicted to nicotine.”
In the statement, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford said, “Preying on children and those looking for help to quit smoking is one of the most despicable examples of risking people’s lives for corporate profit.”
The attorneys general say cigarette smoking “has plummeted among youth,” but vaping use by the same age group has been “skyrocketing.”
“The National Youth Tobacco Survey conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control in 2019 found more than 5 million youth reported having used e-cigarettes within the past 30 days, up from 3.6 million just one year prior,” the statement said.
Responding to the announcement, JUUL said, “We will continue to reset the vapor category in the U.S. and seek to earn the trust of society by working cooperatively with attorneys general, regulators, public health officials, and other stakeholders to combat underage use and transition adult smokers from combustible cigarettes.”
“As part of that process in the U.S., we are preparing comprehensive and scientifically rigorous Premarket Tobacco Product Applications, stopped the sale of flavored pods other than Tobacco and Menthol in November, halted our television, print and digital product advertising, implemented a $1 billion restructuring plan, and support the Administration’s final flavor policy,” the company said.
A separate news release from the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office, which joined the investigation, said e-cigarette use among high school students now surpasses cigarettes.
“Almost 1 out of 4 students was receptive to tobacco advertising while nearly 1 out of 3 students was susceptible to start using e-cigarettes,” South Carolina public health data shows, the attorney general said.
“I am pleased to be working alongside other states to determine whether any of JUUL’s statements or business practices mislead or otherwise harmed consumers,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement.
“Protecting Texans from deceptive business practices is a high priority for my office, and I am committed to holding companies accountable for the quality, effects, and marketing of their products,” Paxton said.
This story was originally published February 25, 2020 at 10:38 AM.
