Long before the CDC echoed the findings regarding Vitamin E and other cutting agents to be a common link in the vape lung illness outbreak, the FDA released their stance on the issue. The early announcement caused not only industry backlash on the CDC but also a tweet from former FDA Head Dr. Scott Gottlieb who made a clear distinction between legal store-bought nicotine products.

The question remains, why did the CDC and FDA, two separate government agencies involved in the investigation, coordinate their efforts to inform the public regarding the issue about black market THC carts from the start? With the explosion in popularity of THC carts – legal and non-legal, it would be of the utmost importance for the alert to be signaled to the users of those products to reduce the additional amount of illnesses being reported.

More recently, the CDC has strengthened their data in a press release and positioning to the public to include the necessary details surrounding 78% of those 1,080 patients surveyed admitted to using THC carts. As of now, both the CDC & FDA are honing in their investigation.