Most Americans want tobacco age raised to 21, CDC survey finds

More than three-quarters of adults, including 7 in 10 smokers, support raising the age of sale for tobacco products to 21, according to a national survey the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released last week (Source: “Three-quarters of adults say raise smoking age to 21: survey,” The Hill, July 7, 2015).

The 2014 Internet survey found that 50.4 percent of adults strongly supported and 24.6 percent somewhat supported raising the age to 21.

Last month, Hawaii became the first state to raise the smoking age to 21 statewide. The law will take effect Jan. 1, 2016, and will also ban the sale, purchase or use of electronic cigarettes for those under the age of 21. The Central Ohio cities of Upper Arlington and Bexley recently became the first communities in Ohio to raise the age for purchasing tobacco to 21, with several other Ohio cities also considering a change.

Raising the age for tobacco purchases to 21 is one of the policy options explored in HPIO’s recent publication “The state of tobacco use prevention and cessation in Ohio.”