The FDA reverses its ban on Juul e-cigarettes

The Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday that it has reversed its ban on Juul e-cigarettes while it reviews recent court decisions and considers updated information provided by the vape maker.

The FDA first ordered the corporate to stop selling its products in 2022, but they’ve stayed on shelves pending an appeal. Juul has maintained its status because the No. 2 e-cigarette maker within the U.S. during this time.

Now, the FDA says Juul’s products are back under agency review — even though it emphasized that this recent status was not a sign they’d be fully cleared.

It said federal statutes barred it from disclosing additional information.

Juul became one in every of the highest-profile successes of the initial burst in e-cigarette use greater than a decade ago. That success was beset by concerns that e-cigarettes were introducing a recent generation of individuals to nicotine addiction. Vaping reached a peak of roughly 28% amongst all highschool students in 2019, in line with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While Juul has since entered a period of economic retrenchment, sales of e-cigarettes and other alternative nicotine products have continued to grow.

Last 12 months, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported e-cigarette use had grown nearly 50% between January 2020 and December 2022. During that period, the agency said, Juul trailed only Vuse amongst e-cig brands.

Now there are signs e-cigarette growth is being surpassed by smokeless tobacco products.

Philip Morris, which now owns nicotine pouch-maker Zyn, recently reported that its smokeless category increased 21% from a 12 months ago and that it now accounts for nearly 40% of the firm’s total revenue, Barron’s reported.

In an announcement, Juul said it appreciated the FDA’s latest decision, adding it now looks forward to “re-engaging with the agency on a science- and evidence-based process to pursue a marketing authorization” for its products.

“We remain confident in the standard and substance of our applications and imagine that a full review of the science and evidence will reveal that our products meet the statutory standard of being appropriate for the protection of public health,” the corporate said.

At the same time as Juul has pursued its appeal of the 2022 ban, that initial FDA ruling significantly disrupted the corporate’s funds, prompting a bailout from two of its largest investors, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

So far, the FDA has given only 23 e-cigarette products, made by just three corporations, official approval to be marketed to consumers.