Testimony before the Mansfield, Mass. Board of Health Regarding Nicotine-Free Generation
- Lindsey Stroud
- Apr 10
- 3 min read
Members of the Mansfield, Mass. Board of Health:
Thank you for your time today to discuss a generational ban on the sale of nicotine products, also known as a nicotine-free generation (NFG). My name is Lindsey Stroud and I’m a Creator and Manager of Tobacco Harm Reduction 101 (thr101.org), an educational resource focused on evidence-based tobacco policy.
While commendable, nicotine-free generation bans overlook the historic declines in youth tobacco and nicotine product use in recent years. Additionally, young adult smoking rates are at record lows in the Commonwealth. As such, severe bans are unnecessary. Instead of implementing more restrictive policies that lead to significant revenue losses, policymakers should reexamine existing policies like the 2020 flavor ban, which have not yielded significant declines compared to neighboring states. A more thorough review of existing bans, coupled with well-funded tobacco control programs, could more effectively achieve public health goals. Key Points:
Youth use of traditional tobacco and modern nicotine products is at record lows in Massachusetts and the United States.
In 2023, only 3.4 percent of Massachusetts high school students reported past-month use of combustible cigarettes and 16 percent reported using e-cigarettes.
Between 1993 and 2023, current use of cigarettes among Massachusetts high school students decreased by 90.5 percent.
In 2024, among U.S. middle and high school students, 5.9 percent reported current e-cigarette use, 1.8 percent were using nicotine pouches, and 1.4 percent were currently smoking combustible cigarettes.
Between 2019 and 2023, current e-cigarette use among U.S. youth declined by 70.5 percent while cigarette use dropped by 67.4 percent.
Massachusetts’ flavor ban and tobacco tax increase has had mixed results.
According to national survey data, the rate of e-cigarette use among Massachusetts high schoolers in 2023 (18.3%) was comparable to rates in neighboring states like Connecticut (11.5 percent), New Hampshire (16.7 percent), Rhode Island (16.5 percent), and Vermont (16.1 percent).
The usage rates for combustible cigarettes among high school students in 2023 were also similar across the region, with Massachusetts at 3.4 percent, Connecticut at 3 percent, New Hampshire at 3.9 percent, and Rhode Island at 3.1 percent.
Smoking rates among young adults aged 18 to 24 in Massachusetts are at an all-time low, with only 3.6 percent currently smoking in 2023 – an 81.7 percent decrease from 2013.
E-cigarette use among young adults has also declined, dropping from 16.3 percent in 2022 to 14 percent in 2023.
Tobacco product retailers in Mansfield are already doing a good job in not selling to minors. Since 2011, the FDA has conducted inspections on 247 retailers, resulting in only 15 warning letters to violators who sold to minors. Only 6 percent of inspections resulted in violations.
Data suggest that the 2020 flavor ban and tax increase may not have effectively contributed to the intended declines in smoking rates and may need reevaluation.
Between 2020 and 2023, smoking rates declined more sharply in New Hampshire than in Massachusetts, with New Hampshire seeing a 25.2 percent reduction, compared to Massachusetts’ 11.7 percent decrease.
Further, during the same period, Massachusetts’ tax revenue fell by 28.6 percent, while New Hampshire saw only a 6.5 percent decline.
In 2023, Massachusetts collected an estimated $598 million in cigarette monies, yet allocated only $6.1 million (1 percent) on programs to reduce youth use and help adults quit smoking.
Policymakers should redirect existing tobacco funds toward more robust tobacco control programs instead of implementing bans
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