More than $17 million in settlement money from a nationwide lawsuit against electronic cigarette maker Juul Labs will be distributed to schools and organizations across Colorado to curb vaping among teens, the Colorado attorney general’s office announced Tuesday.
The $17.4 million in funding — from a nearly $32 million settlement Juul Labs agreed to in April 2023 to pay the Colorado Attorney General’s office for marketing practices targeting teens — will, according to A News item Tuesday of the Public Prosecution Service.
Juul Lab’s $31.7 million payment to Colorado was part of a larger $462 million settlement the e-cigarette company paid to six states and the District of Columbia to settle claims that the company illegally sold its electronic cigarettes marketed to young people and misrepresented the health risks associated with it. vaping.
An estimated 30% of high school students in Colorado have tried vaping, which is slightly higher than the estimated 20.8% of students who have ever smoked a cigarette, according to the Department of Health and Environment’s 2021 Healthy Kids Colorado Survey.
The programs funded by a series of grants from the $17.4 million portion of the settlement will focus on youth vaping education, prevention and treatment, including mental and behavioral health care, according to the attorney general’s office .
“By investing in these organizations, we are taking a critical step toward protecting our youth from the dangers of vaping,” Attorney General Phil Weiser said in the news release. “This funding will enable communities to educate our young people about the risks, implement preventive measures and provide essential treatment for those affected.”
The grants were awarded through two programs: one for nonprofits and government agencies, and another for school districts and charter schools in partnership with the Colorado Department of Education, the attorney general’s office said.
The Combating Youth Vaping in Colorado Grant awarded $6 million to nonprofits and government agencies, including:
- Services of La Raza. The team received $950,000 to create bilingual cessation programs for Latino youth and launch a youth-led prevention program with educational outreach.
- Colorado’s Boys & Girls Club. The program received $855,979 to implement prevention programs and community engagement activities at 50 clubhouses across the state.
- Denver Department of Health and Environment. The department received $541,158 for trauma-informed counseling, nicotine replacement therapy and community engagement, with support from a youth advisory board.
- Rocky Mountain Center for Health Promotion and Education. The center received $800,000 to “improve protective factors against youth substance use” and train adults to build strong bonds with youth in the home, school and community.
- The University of Colorado/Colorado School of Public Health UpRISE program. The program received $544,018 to expand a youth-led social justice movement for tobacco control, provide educational programs, build organizational partnerships, and engage a diverse youth action board.
The Colorado Department of Law is also working on it award of $11.4 million to school districts, charter schools and educational services agencies in the next three years.
“We are pleased to award this grant to combat the youth vaping crisis by providing resources for education, prevention and treatment in our Colorado schools,” said Colorado Education Commissioner Susana Córdova. “Our goal is to give local educators the tools they need to address the health impacts of vaping on our youth.”
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