As more and more studies come out about the dangers of smoking cigarettes, many people are looking for alternative ways to smoke. Vaping has become the next trend in inducing nicotine into your body. Supposedly it is a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes because it bypasses the typical chemicals and uses water vapor instead. However, studies are now being presented that vaping is not a healthier alternative and is leading to illnesses and death. Modern research is finding that vapes and e-cigarettes may cause severe health risks including lung injuries, seizures, strokes, and even death. Historically, vaping companies have always targeted children and teens for their products in an attempt to get them hooked at a young age and use their products for life. However, today a lot of vaping companies are being attacked as more and more families are seeking attorneys to represent them in cases against the companies that cause health problems at a young age.
Important Statistics
In the fall of 2019, 530 lung illness related cases along with 8 deaths had been reported due to vaping. This led to local and state governments taking a deeper look at the problem and taking action. In the summer of 2019, San Francisco became the first major city in the United States to ban e-cigarettes. This led to other cities banning them, as well as others well on their way to do so. E-cigarettes are banned from being sold in states like New York and Michigan. There are many reasons for these bans such as misleading marketing, lack of regulation, and severe health risks.
Juul
Many e-cigarette companies are now being sued by those who are experiencing lung-related illnesses via personal injury lawsuits. Approximately 30 are in court right now with more well on their way. The New York Times reported that 1 in 4 people have vaped before, so the number of personal injury cases both individual and class action is expected to exponentially grow in the near future. Juul, an e-cigarette company that held 75% of the market share, is being sued by several people claiming that they have developed severe nicotine addiction as well as mental and physical issues after using their products. This has led to Juul reamping their advertising campaigns to target people over 35 rather than a younger crowd. They have also discontinued some of their more popular flavors.
Personal injury attorney Joseph VanZandt stated, “Juul knew what it was doing and was very intentional in creating a new generation of nicotine addicts, all while leading consumers to believe the products were safe.” He went on to say that, “Everything they [Juul] did, from designing the product, manipulating the nicotine, and marketing, was targeted at addicting young people…Before Juul, the public health community had spent decades working to drastically lower the rate of cigarette usage among minors, but Juul systematically unraveled decades of progress and sparked a new nicotine addiction epidemic. Juul must be held accountable.”
We will have to wait and see how the situation plays out. However in the meantime with cases continuing to grow, personal injury firms are constantly keeping their ears to the streets. If you or someone you know has had a health issue that may have come from using e-cigarettes, contact a lawyer, like a personal injury lawyer from Royce Injury Attorneys, to see if you might have a case.