New York Raises Vaping Purchase Age to 21

NY Raises Vaping Purchase Age to 21

NY – Nbcnewyork.comwrites that the minimum age for buying cigarettes, tobacco products, and e-cigarettes is now 21, up from the previous minimum age of eighteen. According to the Governor, the new age limit is intended to prevent young people from becoming addicted to nicotine-containing products.

The move comes as the rate of teens using e-cigarettes is reaching what some call epidemic levels. The New York Department of Health stated that 27 percent of high school students in the state now use vaping products. The number is even higher for twelfth graders, with 40 percent of high school seniors reporting using e-cigarettes. Officials believe the spike in young people using these products is the result of flavored e-cigarette pods.

Research indicates that 88 percent of adults who smoke started as minors. Nine out of ten adults who buy cigarettes for underage individuals are between the ages of eighteen and twenty. The law, therefore, plans to prevent these young adults from supplying teens with addictive products.

The administration also moved to ban flavored e-cigarettes in the state, but the attempt did not succeed.

The Trump administration is expected to place a nationwide ban on flavored e-cigarettes. The government has been facing growing pressure from educators, health officials, and parents who are concerned about the high level of vaping among the teenage population. Now that thousands of cases of a potentially deadly vaping-related illness have come to light, the move to make vaping less appealing to teens is gaining momentum. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports more than 2,000 cases of e-cigarette or vaping related injuries have emerged in the United States since last March.