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Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation Calls for Immediate Action on Tobacco 21

ST PAUL (5/10/19) – Today, Senator Carla Nelson (R-Rochester) and Rep. Heather Edelson (DFL-Edina) joined kids, physicians and advocates to make an impassioned plea for the Legislature to pass Tobacco 21 this year. Raising the tobacco age to 21 in Minnesota will protect youth from commercial tobacco, especially as the nation faces an epidemic of teen e-cigarette addiction.

Credit: Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation, a coalition of more than 60 organizations that share a common goal of reducing youth smoking and ending tobacco’s harm for good, joined the lawmakers and urged Minnesota to pass this bipartisan policy before session ends on May 20. Raising the tobacco age to 21 will reduce youth tobacco use and save lives. To date, twelve other states and 32 Minnesota cities and counties have passed Tobacco 21.

“The 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey found tobacco use had risen for the first time in nearly 20 years,” said Senator Carla Nelson, chief author of the Senate Tobacco 21 bill. “I find that unconscionable. As lawmakers and leaders in our families and communities, we cannot sit by as our kids develop lifetime addictions. We must stand up for our youth, and we must do it today. I hope our colleagues in the conference committee will listen to Minnesota kids and make Tobacco 21 part of their final legislation.”

“Throughout this legislative session, we have heard from testifiers from all walks of life who support Tobacco 21,” said Representative Heather Edelson, chief author of the House Tobacco 21 bill. “Parents, physicians, mayors, principals, health experts, teachers, and most notably, students – all came to the Capitol to tell their stories and ask for our help. Tobacco 21 will block Big Tobacco’s pipeline into our schools, to prevent youth tobacco use and save lives. There is broad support for this movement, and now is our opportunity for Minnesota to join other states by raising the age to 21 this year.”

“Big Tobacco is once again reinventing itself to attract our kids,” said Molly Moilanen, Vice President at ClearWay Minnesota^SM and Co-Chair of Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation. “Today’s e-cigarettes are a perfect recipe for youth addiction. They have sleek, stealthy designs, high nicotine content, outrageous flavors made for kids and aggressive advertising. Preventing youth tobacco use is not a partisan issue and bold action is needed to protect our kids. This year, the Legislature has made great progress toward finding consensus on tobacco cessation funding and strengthening our clean indoor act – and we urge them to go a step further and pass Tobacco 21.”

Recent surveys show e-cigarettes and other youth-targeted tobacco products threaten decades of progress to lower youth tobacco rates. The 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey found that a surge in e-cigarette use led to the first rise in youth tobacco rates in 17 years. This increase is concerning because nicotine in any form harms the adolescent brain and may prime young brains for addiction. The U.S. Surgeon General now calls teen e-cigarette use an epidemic and has called on states to implement aggressive strategies to reduce youth e-cigarette use.

Tobacco 21 aims to keep commercial tobacco products out of places youth frequent, including schools. Nearly 95 percent of addicted adult smokers start before age 21, so keeping tobacco products away from youth can prevent lifetime addiction. The National Academy of Medicine estimates that Tobacco 21 would reduce smoking among 15-to-17-year-olds by 25 percent.

Minnesota lawmakers can raise the tobacco age to 21 this year through the Health and Human Services (HHS) conference committee bill. Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation is grateful that both the House and Senate HHS omnibus bills included two important tobacco prevention and cessation policies – funding for statewide quit-smoking services and strengthening the clean indoor air act by prohibiting indoor e-cigarette use where smoking is banned. The coalition urges the conference committee to go even further and adopt two additional provisions from the House HHS bill – raising the tobacco age to 21 and dedicating unpaid tobacco settlement payments to health. These four provisions would help Minnesota combat tobacco addiction in all forms.

“Our youth are facing an epidemic that demands an immediate response,” Moilanen added. “Their health cannot wait until next year or next session. There is still time for Minnesota lawmakers to stand up for Minnesota kids and pass Tobacco 21 this session. Let’s get it done for our kids and our future!”

More info: Tobacco 21 fact sheet, E-cigarette fact sheet

About Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation is a coalition of more than 60 organizations that share a common goal of saving Minnesota youth from a lifetime of addiction to tobacco. The coalition supports policies that reduce youth smoking and nicotine addiction, including increasing tobacco prices, raising the tobacco sale age to 21, limiting access to candy-, fruit- and menthol-flavored tobacco, and funding tobacco prevention and cessation programs. 

Partners include: A Healthier Southwest, African American Leadership Forum, Allina Health, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association in Minnesota, Apple Tree Dental, Association for Nonsmokers – Minnesota, Aurora/St. Anthony Neighborhood Corporation, Becker County Energize, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, CentraCare Health, Children’s Defense Fund-Minnesota, Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, ClearWay Minnesota^SM,  Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio – CLUES, Dodge County Public Health, Essentia Health, Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare, HealthEast, HealthPartners, Hennepin Healthcare, Hope Dental Clinic, Horizon Public Health, Indigenous Peoples Task Force, ISAIAH, JustUs Health, LAAMPP Alumni, Lake Region Healthcare, Lincoln Park Children and Families Collaborative, Local Public Health Association of Minnesota, March of Dimes, Mayo Clinic, Medica, Meeker McLeod Sibley Community Health Services, Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians, Minnesota Cancer Alliance, Minnesota Council of Health Plans, Minnesota Hospital Association, Minnesota Medical Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, Minnesota Oral Health Coalition, Minnesota Public Health Association, MN Association of Community Health Centers, MN Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Model Cities of St. Paul, Inc., NAMI Minnesota, North Memorial Health Care, NorthPoint Health and Wellness Center, Olmsted Medical Center, PartnerSHIP 4 Health, Perham Health, Preventing Tobacco Addiction Foundation, SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, Shift MN, St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, Steele County Public Health, Tobacco Free Alliance, Twin Cities Medical Society, UCare, Vision In Living Life “Change is Possible”,  WellShare International and Zumbro Valley Medical Society. Find out more at: smokefreegenmn.org.