Hawaiʻi Attorney General Holly Shikada announced that the state will receive $6.8 million from a $438.5 million national settlement with e-cigarette company JUUL. The settlement came after it was found JUUL “relentlessly marketed” its products to underage users with fruit and candy flavors and less-harsh vapor, and used ineffective age-verification techniques.
Photo by Renz Macorol
In announcing the settlement, Shikada’s office highlighted a disturbing fact: according to a 2017 CDC report, Hawaiʻi has the highest vaping rate in the country among middle schoolers and the second-highest among high schoolers. Meanwhile, Gov. David Ige vetoed a ban on flavored vape products in July, claiming that amendments exempting certain tobacco products rendered the law ineffective.
Hopefully the settlement will force JUUL to change its ways, but there are plenty of other e-cigarette companies out there—and teens remain among their primary targets.
