School systems sue Juul, saying it spurred vaping epidemic

Schools across the country are grappling with an epidemic of vaping among their students, with adolescents concealing vapes in their sweatshirt sleeves, sneaking puffs in school bathrooms and selling vapes — illegal for minors — in the hallways of high schools.

Now, four school systems are suing the e-cigarette company Juul, saying it targeted teenagers in marketing and spurred the epidemic that has sapped schools and educators of time and resources as they reckon with how to help students hooked on the popular product.

“We're tired of companies that just want to make money at children's expense,” said Whitney Meissner, superintendent of La Conner School District north of Seattle, which filed suit Monday.

The lawsuits come as officials struggle to contain an outbreak of mysterious illnesses and deaths linked to vaping — although most cases involved patients who vaped THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.

Juul did not respond to a request for comment on the lawsuits, but in the past it has defended its products by saying they were designed to help adult smokers quit. The company also has shut down social media accounts and stopped sales of flavored products to retail outlets in an effort to curb teens' use.

More than 1,000 people have been sickened and at least 21 people have died in connection with vaping. On Tuesday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, reported that a 17-year-old boy from the Bronx had died of a vaping-related illness, the youngest victim and the first teen.

Even as investigators focus on black-market THC products as the root of the illnesses, many states have moved to curb all vaping, cautioning all users to quit or banning the sale of vaping products. Pediatricians warn that little is known about the long-term effects of vaping and report seeing alarming symptoms in young people who become addicted to nicotine.

Meanwhile, statistics show vaping rates have been rising among adolescents. About 1 in 9 high school seniors reported vaping nicotine on a near-daily basis, according to a government-funded survey, and a quarter reported vaping at least once in the past 30 days.

The four districts — Olathe Public Schools in Kansas, Three Village Central School District in New York, Francis Howell School District in Missouri and La Conner — contend that Juul purposefully marketed to teenagers and engineered products to make them popular among young people. The sleek devices emit a thin vapor and look like USB drives.