Tobacco use in Nevada 2021

• In 2020, 14.2% of adults smoked. Nationally, the rate was 15.5%.¹
• In 2019, 3.6% of high school students in Nevada smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 6.0%.²

• In 2019, 5.4% of adults in Nevada used e-cigarettes.³
• In 2020, 3.0% of adults in Nevada used smokeless tobacco.³
• In 2019, 24.1% of high school students in Nevada used electronic vapor products on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 32.7%.²
• In 2019, 3.8% of high school students in Nevada used chewing tobacco, snuff or dip on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 3.8%.²

• Nevada received $227 million (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2021.⁴
• Of this, the state allocated $3.5 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2021, 11.5% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual spending target.⁴
• Smoking-caused health care costs: $1.08 billion per year.⁴
• Smoking-caused losses in productivity: $1.09 billion per year.⁵

Tobacco taxes

• Nevada is ranked 25th in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of $1.80 per pack (enacted July 2015), 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
• All other tobacco products are taxed at 30% of the wholesale price.^6,7 

Clean indoor air ordinances

• Smoking is prohibited in all government workplaces, private workplaces, schools, childcare facilities, restaurants, retail stores and recreational/cultural facilities.^6,7
• Smoking restrictions are required in bars (except bars or parts of bars if age-restricted) and casino/gaming establishments (tribal establishments are exempt).^6,7
• E-cigarettes are included in the state’s definition of smoking. 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.
• Establishments are required to post signs stating that sales to minors are prohibited.⁶
• Tobacco products must be displayed behind a register for clerk’s access only.⁶
• Minors are prohibited from buying products made or derived from tobacco, including e-cigarettes.⁶
• Sale of vapor products through computer network, telephonic network or other electronic network must be packed and clearly marked “vapor products” and only after age verification through third party service determines person is over age 21 years. ⁹

• The CDC estimates 50.7% of daily adult smokers in Nevada 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**
• Nevada’s state quit line invests 72 cents per smoker, compared to the national average of $2.28.⁷
• Nevada 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.