Promoting help for addicted youth can reduce smoking
Officials at the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) and TSET Healthy Living Program in Creek County staff praised the signing of a new state law that will modify youth purchase, use or possession (PUP) laws to hold the tobacco industry responsible for their efforts to addict children.
PUP laws were passed in the 1990s to reduce youth access to tobacco, but the policies did not stop retailers from illegally selling tobacco products to children. The new law will eliminate fines for youth caught with tobacco and instead require them to attend a course about tobacco addiction through the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement (ABLE) Commission. The new law also requires parents to be notified. “Penalizing children is not effective in reducing youth tobacco use,” said Julie Bisbee, TSET executive director. “Interventions that provide young people the tools they need to quit are much more effective. This new law restores the burden of responsibility to those who illegally sell tobacco products to children. I want to thank the Legislature and Gov. Stitt for protecting Oklahoma youth from Big Tobacco.” Bisbee noted an American Heart Association survey showed 75 percent of youth who tried to buy tobacco products reported they were not refused sale. The tobacco industry spends $137 million every year marketing their products in Oklahoma, and 27.8 percent of Oklahoma high school students have reported vaping at least once in the past 30 days.
Clerks caught selling to tobacco to those under 21 years old could still face a $100 fine for a first offense.
According to Lisa Prescott, Creek County TSET Healthy Living Program Coordinator, the law will provide more effective enforcement and tobacco-control measures.
“Many youth smokers are addicted and need help to quit tobacco successfully,” said Prescott,
Prescott added, “The new law will better support their community retailer education efforts to prevent the sale of tobacco products to young people. With tobacco companies luring younger customers with candy-like flavors and youth-focused marketing, implementing effective strategies to protect youth from a lifetime of nicotine addiction are more important than ever.”
In counties across Oklahoma, TSET Healthy Living Program grantees are educating retailers and working with them to reduce and prevent the sale of tobacco and vaping products to youth under the age of 21. That work is happening in coordination with the ABLE Commission, the Oklahoma State Department of Health and the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.
Future efforts will engage local law enforcement to understand the number of violations and help educate partners, stakeholders, policy makers and the public about the important role retailers play to ensure youth don’t illegally obtain tobacco.
TSET grantees are also working with local governments to update city ordinances to mirror state laws that prohibit the sale of tobacco products to people under the age of 21. Cities can also adopt ordinances that mirror state law in prohibiting tobacco or vapor retailers within 300 feet of a playground, school or other facility primarily used by persons under 21 years of age.
TSET also provides cessation coaching through My Life, My Quit, a program that offers teens ages 13-17 a variety of free tools and resources to help them quit. Each teen is helped by trained staff via text, phone or web-based coaching. Teens can enroll online and learn more about the program at MyLifeMyQuit.com, or text 36072 for real-time coaching.
Tobacco Stops With Me, also a program of TSET, provides information to Oklahomans on how to protect their families and communities against the harms of tobacco and improve the health of all Oklahomans. For the latest information, sign up for the Tobacco Stops With Me newsletter at StopsWithMe.com.