Vuse

• HOLLYWOOD, FL, Sept. 26, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Healthier Choices Management Corp. (OTC Pink: HCMC) announced that it has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against R.J. Reynolds Vapor Company (”RJR”) in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina in connection with HCMC’s assertions that RJR’s Vuse electronic cigarette infringes one of HCMC’s patents.
• Vuse is owned and distributed by RJR, whose ultimate parent company is British American Tobacco (BAT), one of the largest tobacco companies in the world.
• Jeff Holman, CEO of HCMC had this to say, “We are pleased to be continuing our efforts to police our patent rights through the court system against potential infringers.”
  Mr. Holman concluded, “In contrast to the previously filed lawsuit against Philip Morris for their IQOS device, which was relatively new to the U.S. market at the time of filing of the lawsuit, and is still pending, the Vuse device reportedly has the largest share of electronic cigarette sales in the United States, overtaking Juul in the first quarter of this year, according to Nielsen reports on convenience store sales on tobacco products.”

• The new vaping tax has enraged vaping lobby groups and vaping manufacturers.
• We conclude that the vaping tax is flawed because it is not well-targeted at reducing the consumption of vaping products among the youth.
• As currently structured, the excise tax is not sufficiently targeted at reducing, or preventing, the use of vaping products among youth.

Youth and lifelong addiction

• Disposable vapes, which are closed systems thrown away once the liquid is finished, have become increasingly popular among the youth.
• These are not teenagers switching from smoking cigarettes to e-cigarettes, but rather teenagers who are initiating a potential lifelong addiction to nicotine through vapes.
• The vaping industry claims it sells only to people aged 18 and older, but this isn’t true.
• Among the 5,583 learners in grades 8-12 (high school learners) who completed the survey, 15% used vaping devices.
• Read more:
  Marketers are targeting teens with cheap and addictive vapes: 9 ways to stem rising rates of youth vaping

  These high prevalence rates are not surprising given that vaping devices are marketed to the youth.

• This is a problem, because the excise tax is not well-targeted at reducing the consumption of vaping products among the youth.

Addressing the flaws

• Most vaping products will experience only limited price increases under the new tax.
• The excise tax on vaping products will go some way to reduce the demand for these products.
• Unfortunately, there are flaws in the current tax system.

• View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230530005321/en/
  One of the largest ever vapour product studies compared clinical measurements from exclusive Vuse consumers with smokers (Graphic: Business Wire)
  The study compared clinical measurements from exclusive Vuse consumers with smokers.
• Vuse users have shown significantly lower biomarkers of exposure for priority cigarette smoke toxicants as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO)iii.
• The data also showed favourable differences between Vuse consumers and smokers across all biomarkers of potential harm measured, with three being statistically significant.
• The research shows a clear difference between those using Vuse compared to smokers and reinforces the reduced risk potential and role of vapour in Tobacco Harm Reduction.

• Where did all of these illegal devices come from and how are so many of them ending up in the hands of our youth?
• If the intent of government regulations is to keep Americans safe, including protecting our youth from being intentionally targeted by unethical brands selling illegal vape products, why are we seeing such a lack of enforcement?
• What if the flow of illegal vape products that are flooding our schools could be stopped overnight?
• Why is our government not stopping the infiltration of these illegal vape products at Customs?