Voluntary Steps by Juul Are Not a Substitute for Effective FDA Regulation

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The voluntary steps announced today by Juul Labs are not a substitute for effective FDA regulation of Juul e-cigarettes and all tobacco products. History has shown over and over again that voluntary action by tobacco manufacturers doesn’t work. It is not a substitute for effective government regulation of the manufacturing, marketing and sale of tobacco products to protect public health and keep kids from using them.

The popularity of Juul with kids is due in part to how the product was designed and marketed, but it is also a result of the FDA’s failure and delay in enforcing critical regulations. Other manufacturers are already taking advantage of this regulatory gap and introducing Juul knock-offs that threaten to make the problem worse. We again call on the FDA to enforce the law and its own rules by removing from the market Juul flavors like mango and cool cucumber that appeal to kids and were recently introduced without FDA review, preventing the introduction of look-alike products and subjecting e-cigarettes to FDA review of their public health impact, as required by law.