Tobacco use in Idaho 2021

• In 2020, 13.6% of adults smoked. Nationally, the rate was 15.5%.¹
• In 2019, 5.3% of high school students in Idaho smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 6.0%.²

• In 2018, 5.8% of adults in Idaho used e-cigarettes.³
• In 2020, 5.1 % of adults in Idaho used smokeless tobacco.³
• In 2019, 21.5% of high school students in Idaho used electronic vapor products on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 32.7%.²
• In 2019, 3.4% of high school students in Idaho used chewing tobacco, snuff or dip on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 3.8%.²
• In 2019, 4.1% of high school students in Idaho smoked cigars, cigarillos or little cigars on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 5.7%.²

• Idaho received $75.4 million (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2021.⁴
• Of this, the state allocated $3.6 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2021, 23.3% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual spending target.⁴
• Smoking-related health care costs: $508 million per year⁴
• Smoking-related losses in productivity: $433.9 million per year⁵

Tobacco taxes

• Idaho is ranked 46th in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of 57 cents per pack (enacted June 2003), compared with the national average of $1.91. (The District of Columbia has the highest tax at $4.50 and Missouri has the lowest at 17 cents.) ^6-8
• All other tobacco products are taxed at 40% of the manufacturer’s list price.^6,7

Clean indoor air ordinances

• Smoking is prohibited in all government workplaces, schools, childcare facilities, restaurants, casinos/gaming establishments (tribal establishments exempt), retail stores and recreational/cultural facilities.^6,7
• Smoking restrictions are required in private workplaces.^6,7
• There are no smoking restrictions in bars.⁷
• No smoke-free restrictions exist for e-cigarette use.⁹

Licensing laws

• Retailers and wholesalers are required to obtain a license to sell tobacco products.⁶
• A license is required to sell e-cigarette products.⁹

Youth access laws

• Effective December 2019, the United States adopted a law raising the federal minimum age of sale of all tobacco products to 21.  Some states have not yet raised their state minimum age of sale, however, the federal law takes precedence.
• While the federal law takes precedence, under the state law, the minimum sales age for Idaho is 18.
• Only sale clerks are allowed to access tobacco products prior to sale.^6,7
• Establishments may post signs stating that sales to underage consumers are prohibited.^6,7
• The sale or distribution of electronic smoking devices to underage persons is prohibited.⁹
• Delivery sales of electronic smoking devices requires age verification through debit/credit card verification of name and age to confirm the purchaser is at least 18 years old.⁹
• Underage persons are prohibited from buying, possessing, distributing, and using electronic smoking devices, except for possession during the course of employment to stock shelves or carry products to a customer’s vehicle.⁹
• Vending machine sales and self-service displays of electronic smoking devices are restricted to adult-only tobacco stores.⁹
• Any shipment of electronic smoking devices must include a statement regarding the prohibition of shipping to individuals under age 18.⁹
• The sale or distribution of electronic smoking devices for free or below cost in public places or events is prohibited.⁹

• The CDC estimates that 42.8% of daily adult smokers in Idaho quit smoking for one or more days in 2019.³
• In 2014, the Affordable Care Act required that Medicaid programs cover all quit medications.⁷**
• Idaho’s state quit line invests $4.57 per smoker, compared with the national average of $2.28.⁷
• Idaho does not have a private insurance mandate provision for quitting tobacco.⁷

Updated August 2021

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

**The seven recommended quitting 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, 2020.

2. CDC, Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance System, 2019.

3. CDC, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation System, 2021.

4. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Broken Promises to Our Children: a State-by-State Look at the 1998 State Tobacco Settlement 22 Years Later FY2021, 2020.

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

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

7. American Lung Association, State of Tobacco Control, 2021.

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

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