Health & Fitness
Chicago Raises Smoking Age From 18 to 21
Higher taxes on other tobacco products and a ban on smokeless tobacco at baseball games also approved by City Council.
CHICAGO, IL - The city of Chicago raised its legal smoking age from 18 to 21 Tuesday night.
Aldermen approved the measure created by Mayor Rahm Emanuel at the City Council meeting held on Election Night, according to CBS Chicago and other TV reports.
Other cities preceding Chicago in moving the legal smoking age up three years include New York, Boston, Cleveland, Kansas City and north suburban Evanston.
Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr. Julie Morita applauds the move.
“Today, we’re about to be one step closer to creating Chicago’s first tobacco-free generation, where countless children throughout Chicago have the opportunity to have a life free from addiction and from a destructive habit that will shorten their lives,” she said.
The Council also approved a plan to institute higher taxes of non-cigarette tobacco products, do away with tobacco-related discounts and ban smokeless tobacco at all professional and amateur sports stadiums.
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