SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. — Attorney General Ashley Moody stopped in Sarasota Thursday afternoon as part of a statewide fact-gathering mission regarding the dramatic increase in teen vaping.
Moody focused the discussion at Riverview High School on why more teens are using e-cigarettes, where kids and teens are learning about vaping, and how teens are getting their hands on these products.
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"Everyone feels like it came up so quickly," she said.
Moody addressed a room of school administrators and disciplinarians as part of a round table discussion on the topic. She stated that in 2018, more teens started using vape pens than they had any other addictive substance in recorded history.
"Two thirds of teens don't even know that these products contain nicotine," she told the room.
That statistic includes a Sarasota teen, whose parents filed a class action lawsuit in May after their daughter became addicted to the e-cigarette, Juul.
The NesSmith family stated that Juul's attractive ad campaign and sleek product design has made it more alluring to kids. They also believe that their teen daughter got the product daily from friends while attending a public high school in Sarasota.
Moody believes that the way school officials deal with teens and vape devices can be disjointed. In addition to disciplinary action, she wants schools to teach the effects that vaping can have on teens brains and bodies.
"There are many things that we can do and improve upon, and the next step would be formalizing those into a request for our lawmakers," she concluded.