U.S. - As Juul grapples with teen vaping ‘epidemic,’ CEO tells parents ‘I’m sorry’

[S.J.B.]

As Juul grapples with teen vaping ‘epidemic,’ CEO tells parents ‘I’m sorry’
Angelica LaVito
CNBC
July 13th, 2019

Kevin Burns, CEO of Juul Labs ⁠— the maker of the bestselling e-cigarette in the U.S. and center of federal regulators’ crackdown into what they’re calling a teen vaping “epidemic” ⁠— has a message for parents whose children are addicted to his company’s products: “I’m sorry.”

Since launching in 2015, Juul has quickly come to dominate the e-cigarette industry with roughly 40% of the market, becoming such a dominant player that Altria, the top U.S. cigarette company, invested $12.8 billion for a 35% stake in the San Francisco-based start-up. But the company has a problem: Its vapes are incredibly popular with teenagers.

The Food and Drug Administration has declared teen vaping an “epidemic,” citing federal survey data that showed nearly 21% of high school students vaped last year. Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb and health care advocates blame the surge in teen vaping on Juul.

CNBC’s Carl Quintanilla interviewed Burns for a documentary, “Vaporized: America’s E-cigarette Addiction,” which premiers Monday at 10 p.m. ET. Quintanilla, who toured one of Juul’s manufacturing facilities in Wisconsin with Burns, asked him what he would say to a parent with a child who was addicted to Juul.

...

Despite the unknowns, some researchers say e-cigarettes could help the U.S.′ 34.3 million smokers. Regulators in the U.K. are actively encouraging smokers to give up their cigarettes in favor of e-cigarettes, while the debate in the U.S. proves far more contentious.

Read the full story here.

 

[hydroazuanacaine]

wonder what is considered "vaped in the last year." does taking a single hit off your friend's vape pen count? if so, surprised it's only 21 percent (not that i filled these surveys out accurately as a teen). if that means had or have a vape habit, sad. either way, i'm sure it's a real problem.

sidewalk in chicago is littered with empty juul pods. and little colored plastic sleeves that must be part of the packaging. cigarette butts can't be thrown away in a regular trash can without some effort, but why the fuck throw your plastic juul pod on the ground. there's a trash can on every block. not saying it's okay to litter a cigarette butt -- disgusting -- but throwing a juul pod on the ground with a trash can yards away is mind boggling.

 

[cj]

Those surveys are worthless but I don't doubt they are popular