OKC Vape Store Owner Says Illegal THC Products To Blame For Recent Deaths

Local vape shop owners say a proposed FDA ban on flavored e-cigarette liquid would put them out of business.

“It will destroy the industry,” Liquid Vapor Lounge owner Craig Majors said.

Last month, the FDA announced, "The Trump Administration is making it clear that we intend to clear the market of flavored e-cigarettes to reverse the deeply concerning epidemic of youth e-cigarette use that is impacting children, families, schools and communities."

“The kids that are purchasing these are already buying them illegally,” Majors said. “I feel like it’s up to the lawmakers, the school, and parents to take control of their children and not pass the blame to the vape shop or the vape industry.”

Despite a New York University study showing Oklahomans vape more than anyone else in the country, only four injuries have been reported in the Sooner State.

Related Story: 1st Vaping-Associated Lung Injury Case In Oklahoma Confirmed 

Across the country, 26 people have died and nearly 1,300 lung injury cases have been associated with the use of e-cigarettes or vaping, according to the CDC.

“We are getting new cases reported everyday,” CDC Principal Deputy Secretary Dr. Anne Schuchat told congress. “And I expect this week’s numbers to be hundreds higher than what we reported last week. What we don’t know, unfortunately, is the cause. We know that most of the reported cases with information available so far, describe e-cigarette use containing THC.”

Majors said it’s that illegally modified vape liquid containing THC, the principal psychoactive chemical in cannabis, that is causing problems across the country.

He said over the past three years, the tobacco vaping industry has been highly regulated by the FDA, with oversight on everything from packaging to ingredients.

“Vaping is not killing people, the additives in the THC, black-market cards, bought by drug dealers are killing people,” Majors said.