Rate of Decline for Retailers Selling Tobacco Products to Minors Slows
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iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) — Data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released on Wednesday indicated that the last 10 years have seen a slow in the decline of retailers selling tobacco products to minors.
Some states, the SAMHSA says, are better than others at preventing minors from buying tobacco products illegally. In 2013, Oregon had the highest rate of violations, with 22.5 percent of retailers selling to minors. That figure is more than double the national average of about 10 percent.
Despite the new data, the SAMHSA says that those figures are far below the data from 1992 — when the national average for retail violators was 40 percent.
The percentage of underage students smoking cigarettes also reached the lowest point since 1995 — 15.7 percent.
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