Tobacco.org

Schumer warns of teen smoking  

According to Schumer’s office, in the eight counties of Western New York, there are about 15,500 teenagers who smoke cigarettes regularly; another 4,600 male teens use smokeless tobacco products. That includes: • Cattaraugus County 900 smokers; 300 smokeless tobacco users • Chautauqua County 1,500 smokers; 400 smokeless tobacco users • Erie County 9,400 smokers; 2,800 smokeless tobacco users.

According to U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer, that, due in part to tobacco ads targeted at minors, 79,800 children from New York state will have their first cigarette this year and 23,900 of them will become regular smokers. In order to combat the problem, Schumer announced that he is co-sponsoring legislation, introduced by Senator Ted Kennedy, to prevent tobacco companies from targeting underage smokers with advertisements and products.

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