Lawmakers joined the Illinois Coalition Against Tobacco today to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of Illinois’ comprehensive smoke-free air law and to encourage further efforts to improve tobacco control.
In 2007, the General Assembly prioritized Illinoisans’ health by approving the Smoke-Free Illinois Act, which prohibited smoking in indoor public places, workplaces and within 15 feet of these establishments. As a result, hospitalizations from asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart attacks fell by 20.5 percent, which has saved Illinois more than $1 billion in health care costs.
“Smoke-Free Illinois was a major milestone in our efforts to make Illinois a better place to live,” State Sen. Terry Link said. “But even with this progress, we cannot rest on our laurels. The next step to help Illinoisans live longer, healthier lives is to keep kids from ever becoming addicted to tobacco by raising the minimum age of sale to 21 years old.”
More than 8,700 young people in Illinois become new daily smokers every single year. The vast majority of smokers start before age 21, while the adolescent brain is particularly susceptible to nicotine. The National Institute of Medicine estimates that raising the minimum age of sale for tobacco products to 21 would reduce the initiation of smoking by as much as 25 percent.
“Unfortunately, many young people get tobacco products from their friends and family members who have just turned 18 years old,” State Rep. Melissa Conyears-Ervin said. “By increasing the age of sale from 18 to 21, we’re removing tobacco from kids’ social groups, which is key to keeping them from a lifetime of addiction. If that social pressure and accessibility are both gone, they are less likely to ever pick up a tobacco product.”
Tobacco use is responsible for 18,300 deaths in Illinois annually, including most lung cancer deaths. Each year, the State of Illinois spends $5.49 billion on health care costs for tobacco-related illnesses and manages a Medicaid burden of $1.9 billion.
About the Illinois Coalition Against Tobacco (ICAT)
The Illinois Coalition Against Tobacco (ICAT) is the only statewide organization committed to reducing tobacco use in Illinois by advocating for policies and programs that prevent youth from using tobacco products and help smokers quit.
ICAT partners include the American Lung Association, the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, the Illinois Association of Family Physicians, Respiratory Health Association and the Illinois Public Health Association.