FRESNO (KMJ) — The age for buying any tobacco product – which includes regular cigarettes, electronic cigarettes, or chewing tobacco – is now 21.
The increase, which lines it up with the limit for buying alcohol, came into force Thursday morning. The rise won’t apply to active military personnel, but it will be in place for everyone else.
It’s being enforced by California’s Department of Public Health.
“Obviously there’s a lot of praise from the medical community because they know that it’s going to reduce healthcare costs”, says Chair of the Senate Health Committee Ed Hernandez. “I think the education is going to come when someone who is 18 that purchases tobacco products now goes to purchase them and they can’t anymore”.
But not everyone is behind the change.
“There was a lot of pushback from the tobacco industry”, continues Hernandez. “The business model that they have was to go after the youth, the adolescents in our communities, because they know that if somebody smokes before the age of 21 that 90 percent of them are going to become lifetime smokers.
“And that’s why they fought to hard against this bill”.
He adds that prior to it being signed into law, those underage could feasibly know someone to buy tobacco products for them – but the new rules mean that’s less likely.
The new age limit is now in effect, and it’s hoped that the change in California will be reflected across the country.
