BOISE, Idaho — Idaho is fighting a significant amount of youth vaping in middle and high school students, with rates double the national average, according to the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN).
ACS, the American Heart Association (AHA), and several legislative members are joining forces to address this public health crisis in Idaho.
“It's not just hitting high schools. It's getting all the way down into our elementary schools, and if we don't do anything about it, it's just going to keep happening,” Randy Johnson, ACS CAN Government Relations Director, told KTVB Wednesday.
The FDA reported findings from the 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey that revealed 2.25 million middle and high school students currently use tobacco products.
“We were so close to having a smoke free generation until, really e-cigarette products came on the market,” Johnson said. "If we don't do anything about it, it's just going to keep happening.”
E-cigarettes, or vapes, have become a popular choice among young people, often marketed with appealing flavors and little to no scent, making them discreet.
“We need to do a better job of making sure the online sales are not getting in the hands of youth because there's a lot of that taking place," Representative Marco Erickson told KTVB Wednesday. "We also need to do better at making sure adults are aware that they shouldn't be buying those. It's illegal to buy them for youth. It's happening because they're getting them somewhere."
State lawmakers and health organization advocates have several ideas to decrease youth vaping, with some of them being increasing the tax, implementing equal regulations for vaping and smoking, and requiring vapes to be more transparent with their contents.
Representative Brooke Green is one legislative member that is in favor of increasing taxes on tobacco and vape products.
“This is the second attempt to address the vaping tax element of it,” Rep. Green said. “In our previous efforts, the tobacco industry was at the table during those discussions.”
Green is hopeful for the upcoming legislative session because “the time to do it is outside of an election year, and that's where we're at,” she said.
Government Relations Director of the American Heart Association Erin Bennett is also weighing on the fight against underage vaping.
“We're hoping to move forward with legislation on areas being smoke free, so making sure that all public spaces are smoking and vaping free,” Bennett told KTVB Wednesday. “We want to include those vaping products and devices into the laws that we currently have for tobacco products.”
As the legislative session approaches, advocates are hopeful that lawmakers will pass legislation to reduce youth access and exposure to vaping products, increase taxes, and expand smoke-free zones.
"I was quite disappointed when we wouldn't pass Tobacco 21 the first time, and we finally got it through, but it took a couple of years," Representative Erickson said. "I'm looking forward to seeing what comes this session and then do my best to support it."
Johnson and Bennett said they look forward to working with the Joint Millennium Fund Committee that plays a role in distributing tobacco settlement dollars for prevention and quitting programs.