Tobacco

One of the major public health achievements the Texas Medical Association pushed for this past legislative session was Senate Bill 21, which raises the minimum age to buy tobacco and vape-product in Texas from 18 to 21 years. The lifesaving measure, which Gov. Greg Abbott signed last week, is featured in today’s TMA’s Legislative News Hotline video report.

Deciding how to spend the final days and hours of life is highly a personal decision, and it’s one physicians encourage their patients to make long before the need arises. Today, the Senate debated end-of life-bills after voting yesterday to approve its version of the state’s 2020-21 budget and to raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco and vape products.

Medicine received good news Wednesday that Sen. Joan Huffman (R-Houston) will refile a bill that would raise the tobacco sale age to 21. Refiling might not sound like much, but this is a very good indication of the bill’s likelihood of success in the Senate.

While tobacco use is decreasing, Texas still continues to have higher rates of death attributable to smoking. TMA supports legislative and local efforts to make Texas smoke free and to fund important state tobacco cessation.

A bill to raise the state’s age to purchase tobacco to 21 burned out during last year’s legislative session. But now that the city of San Antonio has done it on a local level, advocates of “T-21” are hoping to light a fire under other Texas cities ― and state lawmakers ― to do the same.

A look at the state of tobacco use in Texas as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Surgeon’s Generals 1964 report linking smoking to cancer.

This year, Texas will experience more than 110,000 new cases of cancer and nearly 40,000 cancer-related deaths. Receiving regular medical care, avoiding tobacco, limiting alcohol use, maintaining a healthy weight, and being physically active can reduce a person’s cancer risk.