The state of West Virginia has reached a settlement with e-cigarette manufacturer Juul Labs Inc. (hereafter referred to as Juul) over allegations that the company violated the state's consumer credit and protection laws.
Electronic cigarette manufacturer Juul has agreed to pay a $7.9 million settlement to the state. The company has been accused of engaging in unfair or deceptive practices, particularly targeted towards minors, in the manufacturing, design, sales, marketing, promotion, and distribution of e-cigarettes within the state. According to State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, the settlement will prevent companies like Juul from adopting marketing strategies that target minors. Morrisey stated that the company was accused of deceiving consumers about the nicotine content, misrepresenting the nicotine equivalency between their products and traditional cigarettes, and underestimating the addictive risks associated with their high nicotine levels.
According to a statement from Austin Finan, Vice President of Corporate Communications for Juul Labs, this settlement represents "another step in Juul Labs' ongoing commitment to address the company's past issues.
According to Finan, the terms of the settlement agreement are similar to previous settlements and provide financial resources for further efforts to combat underage smoking and develop smoking cessation programs. This reflects the current business practices that have been implemented since the company's comprehensive relaunch in the fall of 2019. Given that West Virginia has the highest smoking rate in the United States, the company hopes that some of the funds will be directly used to reduce smoking and improve public health within the state.
According to Finan, Juul has reached a settlement with "40 states and regions, providing billions of dollars for participating states." As reported by 2FIRSTS before, Juul has already paid over $2.6 billion in settlements to different states. Finan stated, "This settlement is based on us resolving private lawsuits across the country and covers over 5,000 cases brought by approximately 10,000 plaintiffs.
According to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Juul e-cigarettes contain high levels of nicotine - the amount of nicotine in one Juulpod is equivalent to 20 regular cigarettes. However, the defense disagrees with this data, arguing that the total amount of nicotine in Juulpods is "equivalent to 1.72 packs (34 cigarettes).
The amount of nicotine contained in one Juulpod is equivalent to at least 20 regular cigarettes, according to a photo source provided by the Associated Press.
In 2017, 14.3% of high school students in West Virginia reported using e-cigarettes for at least one day in the past 30 days. This figure was slightly higher than the national average of 13.2%.
According to data from the 2019 National Youth Tobacco Survey, over 5 million American middle and high school students are currently using e-cigarettes, with 27.5% of high schoolers and 10.5% of middle schoolers reporting current use. Among these current e-cigarette users, 34.2% of high schoolers and 18% of middle schoolers use e-cigarettes for 20 or more days each month.
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2FIRSTS special: Juul settlement summary
JUUL has spent $18.2 billion in hopes of reaching a settlement. Here is a breakdown of the settlement amounts and conditions in each state.
Juul has reached a $24 million settlement agreement with Chicago.
A US district court has approved a $255m class-action settlement with Juul prior to trial.
E-cigarette company JUUL has paid a total of $1.7 billion in settlements after 34 states filed lawsuits against the company.
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The state of West Virginia has come to an agreement with e-cigarette company Juul.
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