Extinguishing the tobacco epidemic in Hawaii

HAWAII KEY FACTS In 2015, 31.4% of U.S. high school youth reported currently using any tobacco product, including e-cigarettes. Among Hawaii high school youth, 9.7% reported currently smoking cigarettes. PUBLIC HEALTH RESPONSE TO TOBACCO USE IN HAWAII Hawaii was one of the first states in the country to adopt a comprehensive smoke-free law that prohibits smoking in workplaces, restaurants and bars. Hawaii made history in 2016, when it became the first state in the country to raise the legal age of sales for tobacco from 18 to 21 in an effort to prevent young people from nicotine addiction and the harms of tobacco use. Although communities in the U.S. had adopted such measures, Hawaii was the first state to enact such a law. Tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes or e-cigs, can only be sold to people who are at least 21 years old. The Institute of Medicine projects that if the age of sale were raised now to 21 nationwide, then “there would be approximately 223,000 fewer premature deaths, 50,000 fewer deaths from lung cancer, and 4.2 million fewer years of life lost for those born between 2000 and 2019.” For more information on tobacco prevention and control, visit cdc.gov/tobacco.

Stephen B. Thacker CDC Library collection