NYC to ban tobacco sales to anyone under 21
Print Edition
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg plans to sign landmark legislation banning the sale of tobacco products to anyone under age 21, making the Big Apple the first large city or state in the US to prohibit sales to young adults.
City health officials hope that raising the legal purchase age from 18 to 21 will lead to a big decline in smoking rates in a critical age group. A majority of smokers get addicted to cigarettes before age 21, and then have trouble quitting, even if they want to do so.
The ban has limitations, in terms of its ability to stop young people from picking up the deadly habit. Teenagers can still possess tobacco legally. Kids will still be able to steal cigarettes from their parents, bum them from friends or buy them from the black-market dealers who are common in many neighborhoods.
But City Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said the idea is to make it more inconvenient for young people to get started, especially young teens who had previously had easy access to cigarettes through slightly older peers.
Bloomberg is also to sign legislation that will seek to keep the price of tobacco high by prohibiting coupons and other discounts and setting a minimum cigarette price of US$10.50 per pack.
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