Hoping to deflect growing criticism about teens using its product, Juul has announced that it will require all retailers to scan the buyer’s ID before the customer is allowed to buy the e-cig.
The changes will go into effect by May 2021.
Juul says the program would lock point-of-sale systems when its e-cigs are sold until an ID is scanned. So far, 50 chains (with more than 40,000 locations) have committed to the program, the company says. Retailers who don’t will no longer be permitted to sell Juul products.
“It is no small task to change retail systems and processes at tens of thousands of retail locations – it is expensive, complex, and could cause friction with legal-age customers,” Juul said in a statement. “To expedite the adoption of these standards, we are providing over $100 million of incentives and financial support to retailers that implement [the system] by May 2021.”
Juul’s efforts might not earn it friends among government officials, though. The City of Milwaukee, for instance, has issued a warning to all residents, telling them to stop vaping immediately after 16 people were hospitalized immediately for chemical pneumonia. All totaled, at least 193 cases of lung illness have been linked to vaping, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. San Francisco, meanwhile, (where Juul is based) has banned the sale of all e-cigarettes.
More must-read stories from Fortune:
—Change the World 2019: See which companies made the list
—Corporate America’s most fascinating standoff: The accountant who exposed Madoff vs. GE
—America’s CEOs seek a new purpose for the corporation
—How the world’s biggest companies stay ahead
—What the world’s biggest motorcycle rally reveals about the state of festival food
Subscribe to Fortune’s CEO Daily newsletter for the latest business news and analysis.