US officially raises the tobacco buying age to 21

A new law in the United States that prohibits the sale of tobacco products to anyone under the age of 21 is now in effect, Report says, quoting the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

On December 20, 2019, President Donald Trump signed the new minimum age into law as part of a sweeping spending bill. On Friday, the FDA noted on its website that "it is now illegal for a retailer to sell any tobacco product -- including cigarettes, cigars, and e-cigarettes -- to anyone under 21. FDA will provide additional details on this issue as they become available."

The increase in the age limit was provided in a package of bills on financing the work of the federal government in the 2020 fiscal year (started in the United States on October 1- Ed.), signed by the American President. The exact time limit was not set: the FDA had six months to amend its regulations, and another three months to put them into effect. However, the notification indicates that the rule is already in effect.

Ten American states, including California, New York, and Texas, as well as the Metropolitan District of Columbia, have already established a similar rule, but in other regions, the minimum age when you can buy tobacco products was lower.