Importance of Selling Tobacco the Right Way

Tobacco use is a major issue in Nevada. Most new tobacco users are youth and young adults so it is important to only sell products to customers 21 years or older. The following information highlights the importance of selling tobacco to the appropriate people.

• According to a youth survey, over 6 percent of Nevada high school students smoked cigarettes as of 2017 and about 15 percent of youth usually obtained their own cigarettes by buying them in a store or gas station.
• According to the same youth survey, the rate for current electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) use is 16 percent for high school students as of 2017.
• As a state, Nevada is ranked 38^th in the nation for tobacco use (tobaccofreekids.org) and there are about 41,000 kids under 18 who will die prematurely from smoking.
• In 2016 in Nevada, 17 percent of adults smoked cigarettes. Nationally, the rate was just over 17 percent.
• In Nevada, health care costs directly related to smoking equal $1.08 billion per year.
• In Nevada, losses in productivity reach $1.09 billion per year.