Bloomberg: In an effort to reduce teen use, Mitch McConnell to raise tobacco purchasing age from 18 to 21. He wants Congress to raise the minimum age for tobacco products, including vaping devices, from 18 to 21 nationwide.
Bloomberg: In an effort to reduce teen use, which the U.S. Surgeon General has referred to as a “epidemic,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said. He wants Congress to raise the minimum age for tobacco products, including vaping devices, from 18 to 21 nationwide.
Mitch McConnells intentions
The Republican leader said he intends to introduce legislation in May. Anticipates it will receive bipartisan support in the Senate. While speaking at an event on Thursday in his home state of Kentucky. Which is second to North Carolina in terms of tobacco production.
The rising use of vaping products among young people. Which studies have shown can affect brain development and lead to higher rates of other drug addiction. According to McConnell, one factor in his motivation.
“This will cover all tobacco products including vaping devices,”. McConnell said at a news event sponsored by the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky. He added that the legislation would require retailers, like under the current system. To verify that a tobacco purchaser is old enough to make the buy.
Loss of tobacco companies
On the news, tobacco stock prices dropped. In New York trading, Altria Group Inc. Fell as much as 5.2 percent while Philip Morris International Inc. Which doesn’t sell directly in the United States—fell as much as 3.3 percent. In London, British American Tobacco Plc’s decline reached 3.5 percent.
The prevalence of vaping among teenagers has increased significantly and according to reports from parents, McConnell said. We all know people who struggled to stop smoking as adults after starting when they were young. Unfortunately, it has spread to epidemic proportions across the nation.
McConnell mentioned that laws raising the buying age to 21 have already passed in 11 states. He claimed that his legislation would be modelled after those
The manufacturer of Marlboro cigarettes, Altria Group Inc. Has backed initiatives to raise the minimum age of purchase for tobacco products to 21. In Juul Labs Inc., the company that creates the vape product most popular with teenagers. Altria has a $12.8 billion stake. Juul mandates that customers who purchase its products on its website be over 21.
the proposed legislation may give the tobacco industry the opportunity to look for compromises elsewhere.By reopening the Family Smoking and Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. The 2009-passed law gave the FDA control over tobacco products.
Read more
