More minors buying tobacco: Agency says goals being met to reduce sales
Federal and state efforts to snuff out tobacco sales to minors are working despite a slight rise in sales from 2011 to 2012, a new report says.
All 50 states and the District of Columbia continue to meet an overall goal of reducing illegal tobacco sales to individuals younger than 18, says the report out today by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, or SAMHSA.
SAMHSA implements the Synar Amendment, designed to decrease youth access to tobacco, which was part of legislation passed in 1992. States and U.S. jurisdictions have to conduct random, unannounced inspections of retail tobacco outlets. The program required each state to reduce its retailer violation rate to 20 percent or less by federal fiscal year 2003.
The national average rate of tobacco sales to minors was 9.1 percent in fiscal year 2012, the report said. Still, it was higher than the 2011 rate of 8.5 percent.
National Synar program coordinator Susan Marsiglia Gray acknowledged that "states have really made significant progress in reducing tobacco sales to youths." Yet budget challenges at the state level and the proliferation of smokeless tobacco products might have contributed to the slight increase, she added.
Danny McGoldrick, vice president for research at the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids based in Washington, D.C., says the program's target rate is" a little outdated." He adds, "I think we can do better than 20 percent."
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario