Oklahoma Legislature
OKLAHOMA CITY — With federal tobacco policies shifting, state-level policies may be following suit this spring.
In December, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration raised the federal minimum age to purchase commercial tobacco products from 18 to 21. The change, which took effect immediately, does not include a grandfather clause for 18, 19 and 20-year-olds. It does extend to e-cigarette cartridges and vaping supplies. A measure is working its way through the Oklahoma Senate to bring state law in line with the new federal law. SB 1423 passed unanimously out of the Health and Human Services Committee recently. The author is Sen, JJ Dossett, D-Owasso.
“Even though the federal law has changed, we still needed to follow through in the Legislature, because enforcement takes place at the state and local level,” state Sen. Greg McCortney (R-Ada) said. “This change will help avoid confusion or ambiguity and ensure clarity for the public, businesses, state agencies and law enforcement. “Tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable disease disability and death in this country. Raising the age limit for tobacco products has long been promoted as a way of reducing tobacco use, so this change will help us with our goal to improve public health in our state.”
According to the most recent data published by the Centers for Disease Control, 20.1 percent of adult Oklahomans smoked in 2017, with higher rates among American Indians, high school dropouts and those living below the poverty line. The numbers also were higher among youth, with 25.6 percent of Oklahoma high school students admitting to currently using commercial tobacco products, including e-cigarettes and chewing tobacco.
Although cigarettes can impact every system in the body, their impact on the mouth is particularly acute, as regular use can foster gum disease and cause the bone and tissue that hold teeth in place to break down. In addition to staining the teeth and tongue, regular cigarette use can inhibit the body’s ability to heal from oral surgery, create a dulled sense of taste and increase the risk of developing cancer in the tongue, cheek, soft palate, gum tissue and salivary glands.
Commercial tobacco use is also the leading cause for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, a progressive condition that gradually makes it more difficult to breathe. The medical impact of e-cigarettes is still being fully determined. However, as of Feb. 4, the CDC has confirmed 2,758 vaping-related hospitalizations across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. That figure includes 64 confirmed vaping-related deaths across the District of Columbia and 28 states, including Oklahoma.
State-level legislation has been filed to ban the sale of all flavored e-cigarettes in Oklahoma but as of Friday, SB 1675 it has not received a committee hearing. The Trump administration formally implemented a partial ban in early February, but as worded, still allows for the sale of pod-based e-cigarettes, including Juul, as well as disposable e-cigarettes, open tank systems, and menthol-flavored products.
The agency that oversees the state-funded cessation and healthy lifestyle programs may also see some legislative tweaks as well. Created in 2000 via a voter-approved amendment to the state constitution, the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust was established with the funds from Oklahoma’s share of a settlement from a multi-state lawsuit against four of the commercial tobacco industry’s four largest companies.
Oklahoma, like 45 other states, receives annual settlement payments, with 75 percent deposited in the trust. Those funds are then invested, with the earnings used to pay for grants and programs that encourage healthy lifestyles, such as the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline and the Healthy Incentive Program. The trust’s principle is currently at about $1.3 billion. The remaining 25 percent is split among the state legislature and the Office of the Attorney General. The former receives 18.75 percent for its Tobacco Settlement Fund, while the latter receives 6.25 percent for ongoing enforcement of the settlement provisions.
However, that financial breakdown may be shifting later this year. Filed by state Sen. Kim Da- vid (R-Porter), Senate Joint Resolution 27 would reduce the settlement amount that goes directly to TSET from 75 percent to 25 percent. The rest would be used to help fund the state’s share of Medicaid expansion. In rolling out his proposed SoonerCare 2.0 earlier this year, Gov. Kevin Stitt specifically listed TSET as one of the potential funding sources for the $150 million in state funding required to participate in the federal government’s Healthy Adult Opportunity block grant program.
Additionally, a joint resolution from McCortney would allow the trust to spend incoming revenue right away rather than require it to be invested first. Since both would amend the state’s constitution, they would have to go before voters before taking effect.