KANSAS CITY, Mo., Nov. 20 (UPI) — The legal age for smokers in Kansas City and Wyandotte County has been raised to 21 from 18.
The vote — 11-1 in Kansas City and 6-1 in the county government — took place Thursday in an effort to curb tobacco use and addiction.
Councilman Scott Taylor asserted a vast majority of smokers become addicted to cigarettes and tobacco before the age of 21.
“This is a community-driven initiative,” he was quoted by the Kansas City Star as saying before the final decision.
A citizen-led initiative called Tobacco 21 KC helmed the campaign to increase the legal age.
The decision comes shortly after two high-profile developments in the larger initiative to decrease the use of tobacco in the United States.
Last week, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported a significant drop in the number of U.S. smokers since 2005. The decline is said to be directly associated with public interventions not unlike Tobacco 21 KC, media campaigns and stricter laws.
“Smoking kills half a million Americans each year and costs more than $300 billion,” CDC Director Tom Friedan said. “This report shows a real progress helping American smokers quit and that more progress is possible.”
Additionally, on Nov. 12, the Department of Housing and Urban Development proposed a nationwide ban on lit tobacco products in and around all public housing residences to further discourage smoking.
“We have a responsibility to protect public housing residents from the harmful effects of secondhand smoke, especially the elderly and children who suffer from asthma and other respiratory diseases,” said HUD Secretary Julian Castro. “This proposed rule will help improve the health of more than 760,000 children and help public housing agencies save $153 million every year in healthcare, repairs and preventable fires.”
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