Tobacco use in Nebraska 2021

• In 2020, 13.9% of adults smoked. Nationally, the rate was 15.5%.¹
• In 2019, 4.2% of high school students in Nebraska smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 6.0%.²

• In 2019, 3.8% of adults in Nebraska used e-cigarettes.
• In 2020, 5.1% of adults in Nebraska  used smokeless tobacco.³
• In 2019, 17.1% of high school students in Nebraska used electronic vapor products on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 32.7%.²
• In 2019, 3.6% of high school students in Nebraska 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 Nebraska smoked cigars, cigarillos or little cigars on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 5.7%.²

• Nebraska received $99.5 million (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2021.⁴
• Of this, the state allocated $2.6 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2021, 12.4% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual spending target.⁴
• Smoking-caused health care costs: $795 million per year.⁴
• Smoking-caused losses in productivity: $605.5 million per year.⁵

Tobacco taxes

• Nebraska is ranked 42nd in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of 64 cents per pack (enacted October 2002), 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
• Moist snuff is taxed at 44 cents per ounce. All other tobacco products are taxed at 20% of the purchase price.^6,7

Clean indoor air ordinances

• Smoking is prohibited in all government workplaces, private workplaces, schools, childcare facilities, restaurants, bars (except cigar shops), casinos/gaming establishments, retail stores and recreational/cultural facilities.⁶
• 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.
• Minors are prohibited from buying or using e-cigarettes.^6,9
• The sale of tobacco products through self-service displays is prohibited.⁶ Self-service displays of electronic nicotine delivery systems are restricted to tobacco specialty stores and cigar bars. ⁹
• Sale or distribution of electronic nicotine delivery systems to persons under age 21 is prohibited. ⁹
• Vending machine sales of electronic nicotine delivery systems are restricted to locations inaccessible to the general public or in locations where liquor is sold. ⁹

• The CDC estimates 53.8% of daily adult smokers in Nebraska 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**
• Nebraska’s state quit line invests $2.28 per smoker, compared to the national average of $2.28.⁷
• Nebraska does not have 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 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.