Tobacco use in Florida 2019

• In 2017, 16.1% of adults smoked. Nationally, the rate was 17.1%.1
• In 2017, 5.7% of high school students in Florida smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 8.8%.2

• In 2017, 4.3% of adults used e-cigarettes and 2.7% used smokeless tobacco.3
• In 2018, 24.8% of high school students in Florida used an electronic vapor product on at least one day in the past 30 days.4
• In 2018, 2.6% of high school students in Florida used chewing tobacco, snuff or dip on at least one day in the past 30 days.4
• In 2018, 4.9% of high school students in Florida smoked cigars, cigarillos or little cigars on at least one day in the past 30 days.4

• Florida received $1.5347 billion (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2019.5
• Of this, the state allocated $70.4 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2019, just 36.3% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual spending target.5
• Smoking-related health care costs: $8.64 billion per year.5
• Smoking-related losses in productivity: $8.32 billion per year.6

Tobacco taxes

• Florida is ranked 31st in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of $1.339 per pack (enacted July 2009), compared to the national average of $1.81. (The District of Columbia has the highest tax at $4.50 and Missouri has the lowest at 17 cents.) 7-9
• All other tobacco products, except cigars, are taxed 85% of the manufacturer’s list price.7,8

Clean indoor air ordinances

• Smoking is prohibited in all government workplaces, private workplaces, schools, childcare facilities, restaurants, bars (except in those that make 10% or less of their sales from food), casinos/gaming establishments (tribal establishments exempt), retail stores and recreational/cultural facilities.
• E-cigarettes are included in the state’s clean indoor air law.10

Youth access laws

• The minimum age to purchase tobacco products in Florida is 21. In December 2019, the United States adopted a law raising the federal minimum age of sale of all tobacco products to 21, effective immediately.
• Products must be under supervision of sales clerk(s) or in sight of the sales clerk.7,8
• Establishments are required to post signs stating that sales to minors are prohibited.7,8
• The sale of nicotine dispensing devices, including e-cigarettes, to minors is prohibited.7,8

Local tobacco laws

• The city of St. Petersburg prohibits the use of smokeless tobacco products at the city’s sports venues, including Tropicana Field.11
• Alachua County prohibits the sale of tobacco products to those under age 21.12

• The CDC estimates 52.8% of daily adult smokers in Florida quit smoking for one or more days in 2017.3
• In 2014, the Affordable Care Act required that Medicaid programs cover all quit medications.8**
• Florida’s quit line invests $4.25 per smoker, compared to the national average of $2.21.8
• Florida does not have a private insurance mandate provision for quitting tobacco.8

Updated April 2019

* National and state-level prevalence numbers reflect the most recent data available. This may differ across state fact sheets.

** The seven recommended cessation medications are NRT gum, NRT patch, NRT nasal spray, NRT inhaler, NRT lozenge, Varenicline (Chantix) and Bupropion (Zyban).
Fiore MC, et al. Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence: 2008 Update. Clinical Practice Guideline. Rockville, MD: US Department of Health and Human Services. Public Health Service: May 2008.

1. CDC, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2017.

2. CDC, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, 2017.

3. CDC, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation System, 2017.

4. Florida Youth Tobacco Survey, 2018.

5. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Broken Promises to Our Children: a State-by-State Look at the 1998 State Tobacco Settlement 20 Years Later FY2019, 2018.

6. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Toll of Tobacco in the United States.

7. American Lung Association, State Legislated Actions on Tobacco Issues (SLATI).

8. American Lung Association, State of Tobacco Control, 2019.

9. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. State Cigarette Excise Tax Rates & Rankings.  https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/assets/factsheets/0097.pdf.

10. Public Health Law Center. U.S. E-Cigarette Regulation: 50-State Review.  http://www.publichealthlawcenter.org/resources/us-e-cigarette-regulations-50-state-review.

11. Knock Tobacco Out of the Park.  https://tobaccofreebaseball.org/.

12. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. States and Localities That Have Raised the Minimum Legal Sale Age for Tobacco Products to 21.  http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/content/what_we_do/state_local_issues/sales_21/states_localities_MLSA_21.pdf.