(Photo Credit: JUUL)

Burns steps down after mysterious deaths of Juul users

Kevin Burns, the CEO of Juul, an e-cigarette brand, announced his resignation amid a spate of mysterious deaths linked to vaping. Juul is under fire from the federal government and multiple state governments for its advertising practices.

One in five high school students used an e-cigarette in the past year, according to the FDA. This led the FDA to call vaping an “epidemic,” and said a new generation is becoming addicted to nicotine after intensive campaigns to end cigarette smoking were widely successful. Beginning in 2019, several people–including teens–began to fall ill with severe lung disease and die. The deaths are under investigation, but all have been linked to the use of e-cigarette products like Juul.

Burns apologized to parents of teens who are addicted to e-cigarettes.

“First of all, I’d tell them that I’m sorry that their child’s using the product,” Burns said. “It’s not intended for them. I hope there was nothing that we did that made it appealing to them. As a parent of a 16-year-old, I’m sorry for them, and I have empathy for them, in terms of what the challenges they’re going through.”

San Francisco recently banned the sale of e-cigarettes, and many others are expected to follow suit as deaths linked to vaping continue to increase.