San Mateo County Office of Education, districts sue Juul over vaping epidemic

County Superintendent Nancy Magee said she is optimistic the lawsuit will catalyze change and ultimately combat the health hazard posed by vaping to local students and the surrounding school communities.

“We hope this lawsuit will help put an end to tobacco companies’ profit-driven efforts to lure our children into a lifetime of poor health, addiction and dashed dreams,” Magee said in a prepared statement.

The county Office of Education is joined in the suit by governing boards of the San Mateo-Foster City Elementary, Cabrillo Unified and Jefferson Union school districts.

A Juul Labs representative denied the claim, noting the company’s commitment to meeting enhanced regulations on the vaping industry and limiting exposure to teens or minors.

“Our customer base is the world’s 1 billion adult smokers and we do not intend to attract underage users,” said the company’s statement. “To the extent these cases allege otherwise, they are without merit.”

Furthermore, the representative noted Juul is adhering to tightened restrictions on the industry which required the company stop sales of mint vaping pods, suspend all domestic advertising and develop new technology limiting youth use.

“We remain focused on resetting the vapor category in the U.S. and earning the trust of society by working cooperatively with attorneys general, regulators, public health officials and other stakeholders to combat underage use and convert adult smokers from combustible cigarettes,” said the representative.

The lawsuit noted the variety of efforts undertaken by company, yet considers those insufficient. To that end, a press release suggested as many as 20% of local teens tried vaping last year, doubling the rate from the previous year.

“The growing use of e-cigarettes among children and teens in San Mateo County is of great concern to county officials and leaders,” said the lawsuit. “Juul’s advertising and marketing scheme continues to harm the youth within plaintiffs’ schools who are now addicted to the harmful products, affecting not only their health, but also their learning outcomes while in school.”

Noting the variety financial losses facing local school districts working to combat the health hazards posed by vaping, the lawsuit seeks an undefined amount of compensation, as well as damages and a request to cover attorney fees, plus additional awards. The school systems are represented by attorney Joe Cotchett, of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy as well as Thomas Cartmell of Wagstaff & Cartmell, county Counsel John Beiers and others.

For his part, Cotchett framed the lawsuit as a landmark effort by local educators.

“The vaping epidemic is a monumental crisis in our schools — Juul has addicted a generation of kids in a couple of short years,” he said in a prepared statement. “Our local school districts are among the first in the country to stand up to Juul and its big tobacco backers.”

Noting the challenges associated with battling the health hazards, Magee said the additional support offered through the partnership is required.

“The San Mateo County Office of Education and our school district partners are scrambling to respond to the expanding use of e-cigarettes by our students,” she said. “Although we are allocating more staff time and resources to address the vaping epidemic and support our students, we cannot do this work alone or compete with the resources of tobacco companies.”

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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