Tobacco use in Louisiana 2023

• In 2022, 16.7% of adults in Louisiana smoked. Nationally, adult smoking prevalence was 14.0%.¹
• In 2021, 7.0% of high school students in Louisiana smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, smoking prevalence among high school students was 3.8%.²

• In 2022 10.4% of adults in Louisiana used e-cigarettes. Nationally, adult e-cigarette use prevalence was 7.7%¹
• In 2022, 4.6% of adults in Louisiana used smokeless tobacco some days or every day. Nationally, adult smokeless tobacco use prevalence was 3.4% ¹
• In 2021, 25.5% of high school students in Louisiana used electronic vapor products on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, e-cigarette use prevalence among high school students was 18.0%.²
• In 2021, 5.6% of high school students in Louisiana used chewing tobacco, snuff or dip on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, smokeless tobacco use prevalence among high school students was 2.5%.²
• In 2021, 8.0% of high school students in Louisiana smoked cigars, cigarillos or little cigars on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, cigar use prevalence among high school students was 3.1%.²

• Louisiana received $439.2 million (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2022.⁴
• Of this, the state allocated $5.1 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2022, 8.6% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual spending target.⁴
• Smoking-related health care costs: $2.19 billion per year.⁴
• Smoking-related losses in productivity: $5.5 billion per year.⁵

Tobacco taxes

• Louisiana is ranked 38th in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of $1.08 per pack (enacted April 2016), compared with the national average of $1.93. (New York has the highest tax at $5.35 and Missouri has the lowest at 17 cents.)^6-8
• Smokeless tobacco is taxed at 20% of the invoice price and smoking tobacco is taxed at 33% of the invoice price. Cigars are taxed between 8% and 20%, depending on the manufacturer’s invoice price. E-cigarettes and vapor products are taxed at 5 cents per milliliter of consumable nicotine liquid solution.^5,6

Clean indoor air ordinances

• Smoking is prohibited in all government and private workplaces, schools, childcare facilities, restaurants, retail stores and recreational/cultural facilities.⁶
• Smoking restrictions are required in casinos/gaming establishments (tribal establishments are exempt). Smoking restrictions are not required in bars.⁶
• There are municipalities in Louisiana with local 100% smoke-free laws, including bars.
• The use of e-cigarettes is prohibited on any school property and in vehicles when a child under the age of 13 is present.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

• In December 2019, the United States adopted a law raising the federal minimum age of sale of all tobacco products to 21, effective immediately.
• Establishments are required to post signs stating that sales to minors are prohibited.^6,7
• Minors are prohibited from buying alternative nicotine products, vaporizers and e-cigarettes, and from possessing a vapor product unless accompanied by a parent or in a private residence.^5,9

Local tobacco laws

• Shreveport prohibits smoking and vaping in bars, casinos, parks, and playgrounds. Cigar bars and hookah bars are exempt.¹⁰
• New Orleans prohibits new tobacco retailers within a 300 foot radius of churches, schools, playgrounds, public libraries, and any sites offering “structured, organized care for youth”.¹¹

• The CDC estimates 54.0% of daily adult smokers in Louisiana 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**
• Louisiana’s state quit line invests $1.57 per smoker, compared with the national median investment per smoker of $2.37.⁷
• Beginning January 2024, Louisiana does have a private insurance mandate provision for quitting tobacco.¹²

Updated June 2023

The datasets for both adults and youth prevalence were used to make direct comparisons at the state and national levels. National prevalence reported here may differ from what is reported in our national-level fact sheets. The numbers here also reflect the most recent data available. Dates of available data 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, 2022.

2.         CDC, Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance System, 2021.

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 24 Years Later FY2023, 2023.

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, 2023.

8.         Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. State Cigarette Excise Tax Rates & Rankings. https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/assets/factsheets/0097.pdf. Accessed October 4th, 2023.

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 October 4th, 2023.

10.       An ordinance to amend chapter 50, article v of the city of Shreveport, Louisiana, code of ordinances relative to the smokefree air act and to otherwise provide with respect thereto, chapter 50 (2020).

11.       An ordinance to amend and reordain article ii of chapter 66 of the code of the city of new orleans, containing sections 66-36 through 66-100, relative to the prohibition of smoking of tobacco, tobacco products, natural or synthetic marijuana, other plant products, and/or the use of electronic smoking devices within the city of New Orleans, to provide for penalties and remedies relative thereto; and otherwise to provide with respect thereto, (2014).

12.       Louisiana House of Representatives. HB NO. 578. Reg. Sess. 2023-2024 (2023). https://legis.la.gov/legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1332443