What Raising the Legal Smoking Age Means for CA

By: Daniella Soloway

This week, both Hawaii and California have raised the minimum age to smoke cigarettes from 18 to 21. The only exception to this rule is that those in active military service can smoke even if they are under 21.

According to Tobacco Free Kids, “95% of adult smokers begin smoking before they turn 21.” The group also advocates that increased age will dramatically reduce peer pressure in high school for younger kids, as the seniors won’t be allowed to smoke.

As many as 34,000 Californians die from cigarette smoking annually, and this bill is expected to greatly reduce that number. The Institute of Medicine expects that this bill will also lower the number of premature deaths by 200,000 for those born between 2000 and 2019.