Black Public Health Leaders Condemn Medical College Decision To Accept Juul’s $7.5M Funding
The grant from the e-cigarette company set off a debate about the challenges of taking corporate money and not becoming biased in the funder's favor. Leaders of Meharry Medical College in Tennessee said the grant allows them to open a public health center to study issues impacting African Americans. Opponents argue that African Americans are targeted with menthol cigarettes and have a higher death rate from smoking. In other news on vaping, a pen exploded and fractured a teen's jaw.
The New York Times:
Black Leaders Denounce Juul’s $7.5 Million Gift To Medical School
Earlier this month, Meharry Medical College, a 143-year-old historically black institution in Tennessee, proudly announced that it had received the second-largest grant in its history — $7.5 million to start a center to study public health issues that affect African-Americans. But the gift has prompted a vehement backlash from African-American health experts and activists because of the source of the funds: Juul Labs, the fast-growing e-cigarette company, now partially owned by the tobacco giant Altria. (Kaplan, 6/19)
The New York Times:
E-Cigarette Exploded In A Teenager’s Mouth, Damaging His Jaw
Kailani Burton bought a vaping kit for her teenage son Austin, hoping he would use it to quit smoking. In March of last year, she and her husband were sitting in the living room when they heard a loud pop. Austin raced in, holding his bloodied jaw. An e-cigarette had exploded in his mouth. “He was bleeding really bad,” Ms. Burton said in an interview. “It looked like a hole in his chin.” (Kaplan, 6/19)
