Tobacco use in Mississippi 2021

• In 2020, 20.1% of adults smoked. Nationally, the rate was 15.5%.¹
• In 2019, 6.6% of high school students in Mississippi smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 6.0%.²

• In 2018, 5.6% of adults in Mississippi used e-cigarettes.
• In 2020, 7.1% of adults in Mississippi used smokeless tobacco.³
• In 2019, 21.4% of high school students in Mississippi used electronic vapor products on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 32.7%.²
• In 2019, 6.5% of high school students in Mississippi 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, 9.1% of high school students in Mississippi smoked cigars, cigarillos or little cigars on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the rate was 5.7%.²

• Mississippi received $248.4 million (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2021.⁴
• Of this, the state allocated $8.7 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2021, 23.8% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual spending target.⁴
• Smoking-caused health care costs: $1.23 billion per year.⁴
• Smoking-caused losses in productivity: $1.80 billion per year.⁵

Tobacco taxes

• Mississippi is ranked 40th in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of 68 cents per pack (enacted May 2009), compared to the national average of $1.82. (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 15% of the manufacturer’s list price.^6,7

Clean indoor air ordinances

• Smoking is prohibited in schools (public schools only) and childcare facilities.⁶
• Smoking restrictions are required in government workplaces and at public facilities where an organized athletic event for persons under 18 is taking place.^6,7
• There are no smoking restrictions for private workplaces, restaurants, bars, 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 not 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.
• Underage consumers are prohibited from buying alternative nicotine products, including e-cigarettes.⁶
• Sale or distribution of alternative nicotine products or any cartridge, component, liquid, capsule, or powder to underage persons is prohibited. ⁹
• Possession of alternative nicotine products by students on educational property is prohibited. ⁹
• Internet sales of alternative nicotine products or any cartridge or component require third-party age verification. ⁹

• The CDC estimates 53.6% of daily adult smokers in Mississippi 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**
• Mississippi’s state quit line invests $2.37 per smoker, compared to the national average of $2.28..⁷
• Mississippi 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.