Tobacco use in Florida 2021

• In 2020, 14.7% of adults smoked. Nationally, the rate was 15.5%.¹
• In 2019, 4.8% of high school students in Florida smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 6.0%.²

• In 2018, 5.9% of adults in Florida used e-cigarettes. ³
• In 2020, 2.3% of adults in Florida used smokeless tobacco.³
• In 2019, 25.6% of high school students in Florida used an electronic vapor product on at least one day in the past 30 days.⁴
• In 2019, 1.5% of high school students in Florida used chewing tobacco, snuff or dip on at least one day in the past 30 days.⁴
• In 2019, 3.5% 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 $1.51 billion (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2021.⁵
• Of this, the state allocated $73.4 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2010, just 37.8% 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 33rd in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of $1.339 per pack (enacted July 2009), 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.) ^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

Licensing laws

• Retailers and wholesalers are required to obtain a license to sell tobacco products.⁷
• Effective October 1, 2021, a license is required to sell e-cigarette products.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.
• 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 underage consumers are prohibited.^7,8
• The sale of nicotine dispensing devices, including e-cigarettes, to underage persons is prohibited.^7,8
• Underage persons are prohibited from possessing nicotine dispensing devices, including e-cigarettes.¹⁰
• Delivery sales of nicotine products require certification from consumer, verification of certification by retailer, notification of consumer of purchase age restriction, confirmation of shipment to consumer by telephone and use of a delivery service that will verify the age of person accepting delivery. Internet sales require advanced credit card payment by the consumer.¹⁰

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

• The CDC estimates 50.4% of daily adult smokers in Florida quit smoking for one or more days in 2019.³
• In 2014, the Affordable Care Act required that Medicaid programs cover all quit medications.⁸**
• Florida’s quit line invests $4.27 per smoker, compared to the national average of $2.28.⁸
• Florida does not have a private insurance mandate provision for quitting tobacco.⁸

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. Florida Youth Tobacco Survey, 2019.

5. 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.

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, 2021.

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

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. Accessed.

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