New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced today that a lawsuit has been filed against an online distributor for illegally selling disposable flavored e-cigarettes, a move aimed at curbing the rampant use among the city’s youth, as reported by the Mayor’s Office. The defendant, Price Point Distributors, Inc., is accused of catering to a youth audience with a product lineup that includes flavors such as snow cone, strawberry shortcake, and Hawaii Punch, offering these products both in stores and online, directly contradicting federal, state, and New York City laws.
In pursuit of stemming this flow of kid-friendly vapes that Mayor Adams says target and threaten the well-being of younger New Yorkers, the lawsuit seeks to prohibit Price Point Distributors from continuing sales, in addition to monetary damages and fines, and this legal action complements previous efforts against illegal operators who peddle these goods. “Part of protecting public safety means protecting the health of New Yorkers, including our most vulnerable – our children, who are more susceptible to nicotine addiction, especially when products are flavored to make the taste less harsh,” Mayor Adams told
the Mayor’s Office
, emphasizing the importance of taking down illegal vape and e-cigarette sales.
“It is illegal to sell flavored e-cigarettes in New York City,” City Hall Chief Counsel Allison Stoddart reiterated, highlighting the administration’s determination to hold companies responsible for prioritizing profits over health. The move has been framed as an epidemic control measure by officials, including Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom, who consider the crackdown on such distributors essential to protecting public health.
The lawsuit argues that Price Point Distributors, Inc., has not only breached substantial laws but in doing so has also underserved public health, nurturing a nicotine addiction among students, and the city’s legal complaint furnishes charges by federal laws such as the Prevent all Cigarettes Trafficking Act and New York-specific legal standards like New York Public Health Law § 1399-ll (1-a), the City’s stringent regulatory framework created to safeguard its residents. Over the past year, Mayor Adams also achieved legislative backing to obscure illegal cannabis stores under “Operation Padlock to Protect,” a city-wide effort that has successfully sealed over 1,200 stores and eradicated upwards of $84 million worth of illegal goods from New York City streets, his office
reported
.
The problematic prevalence of fruit, cola, and dessert-flavored vaping products which the U.S. Surgeon General and the FDA have deemed enticing to children, culminated in a federal ban on such flavored vape products imposed in 2009. Data from the 2022 National Youth Tobacco Survey, revealed by the lawsuit that
the Mayor’s Office
highlighted, indicates alarming usage rates amongst middle and high school students, adding to the urgency of the city’s legal actions against companies like Price Point Distributors, Inc.
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