Polk County Public Schools in Florida became the latest of some 1,300 school districts across the US to join a lawsuit against JUUL Labs, makers of e-cigarettes that educators say have led to a vaping epidemic in the nation’s middle and high schools, WTSP-TV in Tampa reports.
To join the public nuisance lawsuit, districts must agree to pay 25 percent of any money awarded to the attorneys who are handling the case and must also provide documentation as to how e-cigarettes have harmed the district or its students.
“I don’t see a downside to joining this litigation since essentially there is no cost to the district aside from what time would be involved,” Polk County Attorney Wes Bridges was quoted as saying about the district’s decision to join the suit.
The first bellwether case is expected to be heard in November, so school districts are running out of time to join the lawsuit. It’s unclear how much money districts stand to gain, but Mr Bridges was quoted as saying that it could be “substantial”:
“My suggestion to you would be to let us sign up and see where it goes,” he said during the school board meeting where the motion to join the lawsuit was approved unanimously. “If we get a great result, I’m sure our superintendent will find a way to spend that money. If it turns out it is nominal, we had a role to play in preserving the greater good.”
The FDA took steps to ban e-cigarette products a few years ago, we noted on these pages, but vaping still soars among middle and high school students. Florida Health estimated that 22 percent of high schoolers in Florida use e-cigarettes.
In July, the FDA ordered JUUL Labs Inc to remove all its products from store shelves, but it’s unclear whether the ban will have any real effect since knock-offs and disposable e-cigarettes go unregulated. Besides, the FDA paused the ban just a few weeks after issuing it in order to conduct further studies on its effectiveness.
