Politics & Government
Congressman Raja Leads Hearings to Investigate Teen Vaping Crisis
Chairman Krishnamoorthi of Economic and Consumer Policy Subcommittee questions executives, students about JUUL's role in the vaping epidemic
WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, the Chairman of the House Oversight Economic and Consumer Policy Subcommittee, led two Congressional hearings on Wednesday, July 24 and Thursday, July 25, examining JUUL’s role into the skyrocketing e-cigarette use amongst children and teen.
JUUL Labs is the creator of the widely popular e-cigarette device, the JUUL pen, and its flavored nicotine pods. The company has been under growing scrutiny from parents, politicians, and public health advocates for its youth-orientated marketing strategies, which has led to an 80% increase in youth e-cigarette use, or “vaping”.
During these hearings, high school students, public health advocates, and top executives of JUUL Labs testified under oath.
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JUUL sponsored an educational program, in which schools and youth programs were offered grants of $10,000 to $134,000 in exchange for student data and program participation. Students, such as Caleb Mintz, a 17-year old student at one of the six schools that participated in the program, were told by JUUL representatives that the e-cigarettes were “totally safe”. This runs in contrast to overwhelming scientific evidence that nicotine addiction causes developmental issues in the adolescent brain.
In response, James Monsees, a top executive and co-founder of JUUL Labs, testified that his company never intended for its e-cigarettes to be adopted by underage teens. Monsees also acknowledged Congressman Krishnamoorthi’s presentation of statistics that demonstrates an increase in e-cigarette usage to 3.6 million high school and middle school students in 2018, which is 1.5 million students higher than in 2017.
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Congressman Krishnamoorthi has pledged to hold accountable anyone who “knowingly put children in harm’s way”.
These hearings focused on JUUL Lab’s response to the youth nicotine crisis and are part of a larger investigation that began in June.
To watch the hearings: JUUL Hearings Part I and JUUL Hearings Part II .
For any questions about these hearings, please contact Brian Kaissi, Legislative Director, at brian.kaissi@mail.house.gov.