The US Food and Drug Administration on Thursday banned the sale of Juul Lab’s e-cigarettes, blaming the product for rampant youth vaping.
‘We recognize these make up a significant part of the available products and many have played a disproportionate role in the rise in youth vaping.,’ FDA Commissioner Robert M Califf said in the announcement.
Under the FDA order, Juul must stop selling and distributing its e-cigarette device, as well as four types of Juul pods.
The decision comes nearly two years after the company submitted its application to the FDA with the hopes of continuing to sell their products.
The agency, however, decided that Juul failed to prove their products meet legal standards, according to Michele Mital, the acting director for the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products.
‘The FDA is tasked with ensuring that tobacco products sold in this country meet the standard set by the law, but the responsibility to demonstrate that a product meets those standards ultimately falls on the shoulders of the company,’ Mital said.
‘The company did not provide that evidence and instead left us with significant questions. Without the data needed to determine relevant health risks, the FDA is issuing these marketing denial orders,’ she added.
While Juul products have been marketed as an effective tool to help smokers quit, the health impacts on new users have been cause for concern as many young people have become incredibly ill after using vapes.
Some young people in the US have even .
The FDA has shown support for other vape companies that aren’t marketing their products to younger people, though their denial of Juul may change how regulators view all e-cigarettes.
Health officials have long suspected that Juul played a role in attracting young, non-smokers to vaping. As a result, the FDA first banned the sale of fruity and sweet flavors of Juul’s e-cigarettes, with the hopes of deterring minors from using the products.
Now, all of Juul Lab’s products currently marketed in the US will be taken off the shelves.
The order does not prevent consumers from possessing or using Juul products.
On Wednesday, when news of the ban shares of Marlboro-maker Altra, which owns 35% stake in Juul, fell more than 8% in trading.
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