Philadelphia has declared a new front in the fight against teen nicotine addiction. On Wednesday, Oct 21, the city’s Health Department announced a citywide initiative to connect young people with vaping cessation resources, built around social media outreach and a single text message.
A campaign that speaks teen
The centerpiece is “Don’t Get Finessed” (finessed is slang for being duped, robbed or tricked), a social media push aimed at young people ready to quit. Teens can text “KickTheVape” to 88709 for free, 24/7, confidential support. It is part of a larger “Kick the Vape” initiative with more campaigns planned in the coming years, with details at smokefreephilly.org and funding from multiple sources.
The launch joins the School District of Philadelphia, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), and the EX Program at the Mayo Clinic. Health Commissioner Palak Raval-Nelson did not mince words: “Vaping is just as bad, if not worse, than smoking cigarettes. Every kid, if I could pull the vape out of their hands, I would, but I can’t.”
The potency problem
Doctors at the launch compared single pods and disposables to packs of cigarettes:
| Device | Cigarette equivalents | Nicotine content |
|---|---|---|
| JUUL pod | 37 cigarettes | 41 mg |
| VUSE pod | 82 cigarettes | 90 mg |
| Elf Bar (rebranded EBCreate) | 590 cigarettes | 650 mg |
“If I had to match the potency of one of these devices, kids would be wearing four or five (nicotine) patches,” said Dr. Samara Jinks-Chang, a CHOP attending physician and associate director of the Adolescent Specialized Treatment and Recovery Team (A-Start). She said a three-pronged approach of text-based support, medication and behavioral interventions can significantly increase abstinence, adding: “I just think it has to be a full-court press… health department, the school district, other community organizations, everybody has to be involved.”
Support, not punishment
Harmony Ellis, 17, a student advocate at Freire Charter High School in Rittenhouse, described daily vaping in school bathrooms that leads to searches and discomfort for everyone. She said students who seek help must not feel judged. District medical officer Dr. Kendra McDow confirmed that is official policy: students caught vaping get a tobacco prevention curriculum instead of suspension.
A city with the biggest teen vaping problem
CDC survey data shows more young people vape in Philadelphia than in any other major US city. In 2025, more than 20% of Philadelphia high school students vaped in the past year, and 3 out of 10 said they had used a vape at least once.
A recent youth vaping study shows the trend extends well beyond one city. The campaign lands as Pennsylvania begins enforcing Act 57, a new ban on most vape products, and anyone looking for a way out can quit vaping with free support in most states.
Source: PhillyVoice reported the Oct 21 news conference in full.