Dental Public Health Resident Harvard School of dental Medicine
Participants should be aware of the following financial/non-financial relationships: . Vinish Aravindakshan, BDS MSc DDPH RCS: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.
Data from the most recent national Youth Tobacco Survey indicates that there has been a decline in cigarette usage and other tobacco product usage (except e-cigarette) in Massachusetts. The e-cigarette usage among high school students in the state is significantly higher than that of the national average. While the state has imposed many stringent tobacco laws including restricting flavored tobacco to adult-only retail tobacco stores and smoking bars, high school students still have access to e-cigarettes through online platforms, friends above 21 years of age, and the black market. Research has shown that frequent usage of tobacco products can adversely affect people's health resulting in an increase in healthcare expenses and losses in productivity. The environmental effects of tobacco waste have also been well documented in recent years. We believe that there should be more robust policies targeting the channels through which youth get access to e-cigarettes and tobacco products. Hence, we propose an innovative model for tobacco consumption in Massachusetts that includes tobacco sale restrictions on the retail market as well as the concept of smoke ATMs and personalized Tobacco cards (inspired by Charlie card system in Boston). While currently, the model being proposed is for cigarettes only, we aim to gather insights of distinguished researchers attending the round table session as we aim to incorporate e-cigarettes into this innovative model.
