Tobacco use among youth has long been a concern. But today’s youth are the target of tobacco marketing at increasingly younger ages. The tobacco products marketed to them have moved beyond cigarettes and now dip into an assortment of products including e-cigarettes and vapes, toothpicks, little cigars, and dissolvable strips all made in “kid-friendly” flavors.
Tobacco companies spend over $8 billion a year on tobacco marketing, and over $180 million of that is used in South Carolina, according to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. We must hold Big Tobacco and tobacco retailers accountable. South Carolina does not require tobacco retailers to hold a license to sell these products. Most states require a license to operate a tattoo parlor, hair/nail salon or liquor store. Yet, our state doesn’t require a license to sell dangerous, addictive tobacco products. Something is off.
S.C. House Bill 3754 would require tobacco retail licensure. This would help enforce tobacco control laws and provide for penalties and fines for any retailers
caught selling tobacco products to individuals under the minimum legal sales age.
It is no secret that tobacco use causes a wide range of health issues, both long and short-term. The unprecedented spike in e-cigarettes and smoking has been brought to national attention, and we all need to work together to hold tobacco retailers accountable. As a clinical operations manager and president of the American Heart Association Upstate Board of Directors, it concerns me when I learn the youngest of patients are smoking and consuming tobacco products. Even more concerning is the fact that there are more tobacco retailers in communities with Black and Hispanic residents. Diverse communities have been targeted by tobacco companies for decades. This is a health equity issue and now is the time to stop this. Implementing tobacco retail licensing policies in South Carolina would enforce tobacco sale regulations and help reduce youth exposure to tobacco. Like so many, I want a safer future for our kids.
– Chandra Mansell, Upstate American Heart Association Board President; Clinical Operations Manager, Healogics
