Salem, Ore.- The Oregon Senate has passed legislation raising the legal sales age for all tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes, to 21. The bill now heads to the House.
“This bill will decrease youth smoking rates, decrease tobacco-related diseases and health care costs and will improve public health,” said Senator Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, (D) Beaverton, a sponsor of Senate Bill 754.
The Oregon Healthy Teens Survey finds 24 percent of Oregon’s 11th graders currently use tobacco products.
If passed, Oregon would follow California and Hawaii in raising its tobacco sales age to 21. The policy has also passed in at least 210 cities and counties nationwide.
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