Tobacco use in New Mexico 2021

• In 2020, 16.1% of adults smoked. Nationally, the rate was 15.5%.1
• In 2019, 8.9% of high school students in New Mexico smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 6.0%.2

• In 2019, 4.9% of adults used e-cigarettes.3
• In 2020, 3.6% used smokeless tobacco.3
• In 2019, 34.0% of high school students in New Mexico used electronic vapor products on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 32.7%.2
• In 2019, 5.9% of high school students in New Mexico 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, 8.3% of high school students in New Mexico smoked cigars, cigarillos or little cigars on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 5.7%.2

• New Mexico received $134.2 million (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2021.4
• Of this, the state allocated $5.5 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2021, 24.2% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual spending target.4
• Smoking-caused health care costs: $844 million per year.4
• Smoking-caused losses in productivity: $596.8 million per year.5

Tobacco taxes

• New Mexico is ranked 19th in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of $2.00 per pack (enacted July 2019), compared to 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
• Cigars that look like, are packaged and labeled like or are marketed and advertised like cigarettes, are taxed at $1.66 per 20 cigars. Roll-your-own tobacco is taxed at $1.66 per 1.8 ounces of tobacco. Bidis/kreteks are taxed at $1.66 per 20. All other tobacco products are taxed at 25% of the product value.6,7

Clean indoor air ordinances

• Smoking is prohibited in all government workplaces, private workplaces (non-public workplaces with two or fewer employees exempt), schools, childcare facilities, restaurants, bars (allowed in cigar bars), retail stores and recreational/cultural facilities.6,7
• There are no smoking restrictions for casinos/gaming establishments.6,7
• E-cigarettes are included in the state’s definition of smoking.9
• The use of e-cigarettes is prohibited on school property and by students at school-sponsored activities.9

Licensing laws

• Retailers and wholesalers are required to obtain a license to sell tobacco products, beginning January 1, 2021.10
• A license is required to sell e-cigarette products, beginning January 1, 2021.9,10

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
• Establishments are required to post signs stating that sales to minors are prohibited.6,7
• Sale clerks must restrict access to tobacco products prior to sale.6,7
• The sale or distribution of e-cigarettes or a nicotine liquid container to persons under age 21 is prohibited. 9
• Self-service displays of e-cigarettes and nicotine liquid are prohibited. 9
• Vending machine sales of e-cigarettes and nicotine liquid containers are restricted to locations inaccessible by persons under age 21. 9
• Sales of e-cigarettes that are “knowingly attractive to minors” are prohibited. This includes products with packaging or labeling containing cartoon characters or mimicry of products, characters, and the like primarily marketed toward minors. 9
• Free samples of e-cigarettes and nicotine liquid are prohibited without express written approval. 9
• Delivery sales of e-cigarettes require third-party age verification. 9
• Licenses may not be issued to businesses within 300 feet of a school (unlcess business operated prior to July 1, 2020). 9

• The CDC estimates 56.7% of daily adult smokers in New Mexico quit smoking for one or more days in 2019.3
• In 2014, the Affordable Care Act required that Medicaid programs cover all tobacco cessation medications.7**
• New Mexico’s state quit line invests $5.66 per smoker, compared to the national average of $2.28.7
• New Mexico has a private insurance mandate provision for cessation.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 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, 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 20 Years Later FY2019, 2018.

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.

10. 2020 N.M. Laws ch. 46 §§ 5(A); 6(A); and 7(A). https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/20%20Regular/final/SB0131.pdf. Accessed.