United States: Tobacco 21 laws are effective and convince other countries

After the gradual introduction of the US Tobacco 21 laws[1] which have proven successful across the country, Australian and Indian policymakers are also considering raising the tobacco sales age to 21 in their countries.

On December 20, 2019, the President of the United States signed into law a bill amending the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to raise the federal minimum age for the sale of tobacco products from 18 to 21. This legislation (known as Tobacco 21 or T21) makes it illegal for a retailer to sell tobacco products—including cigarettes, cigars, and e-cigarettes—to anyone under the age of 21.

The state of Tasmania in Australia was inspired by this experience.[2]. A bill to ban the sale of traditional cigarettes to people under the age of 21 will be presented to Parliament in March 2021. Due to the high smoking rate compared to the rest of the country (22.6% compared to around 10% in the country as a whole)[3] and given retailers' compliance with the current law prohibiting sales to under-18s, the T21 project could quickly prove successful in Tasmania.

In India, the Ministry of Health has proposed 1^er January Amendments to the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act 2020[4] which would include banning the sale of tobacco to those under 21, banning the sale of single cigarettes and removing designated smoking areas in public places. These amendments are in line with international best practices and would enable the country to strengthen its policy of reducing tobacco prevalence.

Effectiveness of Tobacco 21 Policies in the United States

Research shows that most adult smokers started using tobacco as teenagers.[5] and that the younger you start smoking, the harder it is to quit and the more likely you are to die prematurely from a tobacco-related disease. Tobacco 21 laws are an effective tobacco prevention strategy. Such a measure makes it harder for young people to access tobacco products. As a corollary, it makes it harder for them to start smoking at a time when their brains may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of nicotine. This legislation is also likely to counter the circumvention practices that sometimes exist with young adults who purchase tobacco products for minors.

Research conducted in Hawaii[6] indicate that the state’s Tobacco 21 law led to a 4.4% decline in cigarette sales and a decline in the market share of menthol products. Data from Needham, Massachusetts (where the ban was implemented in 2003), showed that teen smoking dropped significantly—from 13% to 7%—after the law was enacted. This was a larger decline than that seen in control communities that did not adopt Tobacco 21 legislation. Similarly, a 2019 study found that Tobacco 21 laws reduced the risk of becoming a daily smoker by 39% among 18- to 20-year-olds who had ever used tobacco products or e-cigarettes.[7].

Keywords: Tobacco 21, United States, youth, Australia, India

Photo credit: ©Tobacco 21 ©Generation Without Tobacco

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[1] Raise the federal minimum age for the sale of tobacco products from 18 to 21. [2] Alison Costelloe, Tasmania could become the first state in Australia to raise smoking age to 21, ABC News, January 11, 2021, accessed January 12, 2021 [3] Tasmanian Tobacco Control Plan – Progress Report 2019, Department of Health [4] Nidhi Sharma, Government proposes to raise smoking age to 21, ban loose cigarettes sale, The Economic Times, January 6, 2021, accessed January 12, 2021 [5] Winickoff, Jonathan P et al. “Retail impact of raising tobacco sales age to 21 years.” American journal of public health flight. 104.11 (2014): e18-21. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2014.302174 [6] Glover-Kudon R, Gammon DG, Rogers T, et al Cigarette and cigar sales in Hawaii before and after implementation of a Tobacco 21 Law Tobacco Control 2021;30:98-102. [7] Friedman AS, Buckell J, Sindelar JL. Tobacco-21 laws and young adult smoking: quasi-experimental evidence. Addiction. 2019 Oct;114(10):1816-1823. doi:10.1111/add.14653. Epub 2019 Jul 24. PMID: 31342591; PMCID: PMC7233410. National Committee Against Smoking |