People everywhere are in shock upon hearing the news that as of March 10, California lawmakers voted to raise the smoking and vaping age from 18 to 21. The legislation is currently pending while people wait to see if the governor will sign the bill. Changing the smoking age to 21 not only takes away the rights associated with becoming an adult in this nation, but is another intrusion from the government that restricts people from making independent decisions about their health. The law is also unnecessary, as there is not enough accurate scientific research to prove that it will decrease the chances of a teen smoking (abcnews.go.com).

   According to the ABC News website, Assembly Leader Chad Mayes said, “You can commit a felony when you’re 18 years old and for the rest of your life, be in prison, and yet you can’t buy a pack of cigarettes.” An 18 year old can register to vote, enlist in the military, sign legally binding contracts, and consent to sex. Therefore, if they are given all of these responsibilities, shouldn’t they be given the same respect and responsibility when it comes to their health? And yet, adults having the right to smoke tobacco keeps some people up at night. With all of the responsibility this age puts on their shoulders, young adults should be given the rights that they freely deserve in this country, and if they are to be truly treated as adults, who can be sent to jail for life, it is only fair that they are given all the rights of independent, free, American adults, and using tobacco is absolutely included in those rights (abcnews.go.com).

   In addition, 18 year olds also have the responsibility of taking care of their own healths. According to an article on the Forbes website, Mr. Paul Hsieh said, “If the government can prevent an adult 18-year old from smoking, can they also stop him or her from eating too many chocolate chip cookies? Or require that they eat enough vegetables?” (forbes.com). There are tons of foods and drinks that if consumed too much are bad for people’s health, not to mention the dangers of not exercising; yet, you don’t see the government telling you what food you can or can’t eat because it isn’t healthy for you, or forcing you to go out for a run once a week.

   This is because people are responsible for their individual healths, and as adults, the government assumes that 18-year-olds are capable of making these decisions on their own. Why should laws about cigarettes be any different? If the government is truly worried about the health risks of cigarettes, it should instead, from an economic viewpoint, have health insurance companies charge smokers with higher rates, which would discourage smoking while also keeping people accountable if they do decide to smoke and medical issues arise.

  According to  the Los Angeles Times, the age change simply won’t stop teens from smoking at all. In the 1990s, three different communities in Massachusetts attempted to discourage underage smoking by campaigning fiercely and revealing which stores were selling to kids who were underage, and although this eliminated underage sales, it had no effect on how many teens younger than 18 were smoking. Researchers stated that this was because most minors get cigarettes from their older friends. Even in the days of Prohibition, drinking never stopped, and if Prohibition failed greatly, why would we as a society think that banning a substance like tobacco from teens prevent them from smoking? (latimes.com).

   Overall, the idea of changing the smoking age to 21 is unnecessary and unrealistic. The government should not decide how adults manage their own healths. If this nation treats 18 year olds as adults, they should have all the responsibilities that come with it.