Master of Public Health (MPH) student Brittany Tayler serves as the director of the Community and Advocacy Rotation for Hurley Medical Center residents and works closely with a number of different organizations in the Flint and Genesee County community. She also is the Genesee Intermediate School District Medical Director and works closely with the Michigan Department of health and Human Services to inform best policies around youth tobacco use. Below is her testimony to the Michigan Regulatory Affairs Committee.
Speaking to the MI Regulatory Affairs Committee
My name is Dr. Brittany Tayler, and I am an internist and pediatrician from Flint, Michigan, and I am here representing the Michigan chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics as the E-cigarette Champion. In that role I serve as the co-chair of the Keep MI Kids Tobacco Free Coalition.
I know I’ve spoken to you all before on the health harms of tobacco products, particularly e-cigarettes, and the direct impact nicotine has on the developing brain. We can all acknowledge that tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death in Michigan and has significant negative health impacts on every part of the human body. I won’t rehash those details today as we have already covered them but want to speak to you today with my other hat on – a public health professional.
As an assistant professor at the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health at Michigan State University, I have devoted my life to studying and advocating for policies that are evidence based and protect the health of the community at large. Senate bills 651, 652, 653, and 654 are exactly that – evidence based and effective strategies to prevent tobacco use in youth and support those struggling with addiction.
Today, I am here to support this legislation that would establish tobacco retail licensure in Michigan and remove penalties for minors caught with tobacco products. These bills represent a much-needed shift toward evidence-based strategies for reducing youth tobacco use.
Tobacco retail licensure is a proven, evidence-based approach to reducing youth access to these products. By requiring retailers to be licensed, we create a system of accountability and oversight. Licensed retailers are more likely to follow age verification protocols and adhere to regulations that prevent minors from purchasing tobacco products as well as marketing and advertising guidelines. It has been recommended in reports by the Surgeon General as an evidenced based strategy numerous times. A 2019 study published in Pediatrics found that in jurisdictions with TRL, the rates of youth cigarette and e-cigarette use were HALF that of jurisdictions with weak or no TRL. This was found true for initiation and continued use of tobacco products.
Another study found that in areas with TRL, youth were twice as likely to be aware of the negative health effects of tobacco products and decrease the acceptability of using tobacco products as a youth. Another study found that sales to minors dropped by 26% after the implantation of TRL. And these are just a few studies highlighting the positive impact of TRL…
On the other hand, penalizing young people for possession, use, or purchase of tobacco products is not an evidence-based approach. In fact, the evidence shows that PUP penalties do not reduce youth tobacco use, and instead, they can actually exacerbate the issue. When minors face punitive measures, it often leads to stigma and secrecy rather than openness and willingness to seek help. PUP penalties shift the responsibility from those selling the products to the young people using them, which is counterproductive to public health goals.
Even modest administrative fines for PUP provisions can be burdensome, especially for low-income youth and families, and unpaid fines can escalate to criminal charges.
Early interactions with the criminal justice system can severely impact a young person’s education, employment, housing, and future opportunities. Socio-economic factors are already significant risk factors for youth tobacco use, and fines only deepen these challenges.
Instead, removing these penalties allows us to address youth tobacco use as the public health issue it truly is. Without the threat of penalties, young people are more likely to be open about their use and can be connected with the resources and support they need to quit. This is especially important for adolescents, who are still developing and may lack the tools to navigate addiction alone.
With these bills, Michigan has an opportunity to adopt a comprehensive, evidence-based approach to prevent youth tobacco use. By implementing tobacco retail licensure and removing PUP penalties, we can create a safer, healthier environment for young people across the state. These policies are best practices, recommended by public health experts and proven to be effective.
I urge you to support this legislation as a step toward protecting our youth and ensuring Michigan’s public health priorities align with what we know works. Thank you for your time and for your commitment to our communities’ health.
Brittany Tayler is an assistant professor at the MSU-Hurley Pediatric Public Health Initiative in the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health in the College of Human Medicine. She completed post-residency training as the second Alice Hamilton Scholar and is currently working on her Master of Public Health from MSU. She earned her medical degree from Albany Medical College. She works clinically at Hurley Medical Center in internal medicine and pediatrics and is a core faculty member for the internal medicine, med/peds and pediatric residencies there.
November 7, 2024
