Illinois reaches $20 million settlement with distributors of Posh e-cigarettes
Published 5:29 pm Tuesday, August 4, 2026
CHICAGO — Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced a settlement Monday with the entities responsible for distributing Posh, one of the state’s top-selling disposable vape brands, resolving allegations that the company sold unauthorized flavored e-cigarettes and marketed them in ways designed to appeal to young people.
The settlement stems from a lawsuit Raoul filed in January 2025 as part of a coordinated, bipartisan effort among state attorneys general to hold companies accountable for manufacturing, distributing, selling and marketing flavored disposable e-cigarettes without federal authorization. The lawsuit alleged that Posh products violated Illinois’ Youth Prevention Vaping Act, which prohibits the sale of e-cigarettes that have not been approved for marketing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The lawsuit also alleged the company marketed its products in a wide range of fruit and candy flavors, including Gummy Bear Ice, Ice Cream Cone and Jelly Berry, and promoted them on social media platforms popular with young people, such as Instagram, using imagery aimed at attracting youth.
“Today’s settlement ensures one of the most prolific vaping brands in Illinois will no longer sell unauthorized e-cigarettes with flavors that appeal to youth,” Raoul said in a statement. “I remain committed to working to protect our communities from the harms of illegal and unregulated e-cigarettes and will continue to hold companies accountable for targeting youth with their addictive products.”
Under the settlement, the defendants must pay $20 million, funds that will support continued state enforcement against illicit vaping companies. The entities are barred from selling, distributing or advertising Posh e-cigarettes in Illinois unless their products receive a marketing authorization order from the FDA, which is required for all new tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, before they can be legally sold in the U.S.
The settlement also prohibits the defendants from marketing any e-cigarette product in ways attractive to youth, including through the use of cartoons, social media influencers or models under age 35, and requires the companies to use all available age-verification tools on social media accounts where their products are advertised.
The announcement is the latest in a series of actions Raoul has taken targeting youth e-cigarette use. In June, Shopify Inc. announced it would ban the sale of all vaping products on its platform after Raoul and a bipartisan coalition of 25 attorneys general pressed the company to curb merchants selling illegal tobacco products through its services.
In May, Raoul joined a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general urging the FDA to abandon draft guidance that would have eased approval standards for flavored e-cigarettes, which public health officials have said disproportionately contribute to youth nicotine addiction. In April, Raoul joined a similar coalition calling on major credit card companies and payment processors to strengthen efforts to prevent their networks from being used to facilitate illegal vape sales.
Residents seeking help quitting tobacco use can find free resources through the Illinois Tobacco Quitline at 1-866-QUIT-YES.
