Indiana Highlights

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Tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States and in Indiana. To address this enormous toll, the American Lung Association calls for the following actions to be taken by Indiana’s elected officials:

  1. Increase Indiana’s cigarette tax by $2.00 per pack;
  2. Increase funding for Indiana’s tobacco prevention and cessation commission; and
  3. Pass state and local laws that eliminate smoking, including e-cigarette use in all public places and workplaces.
During the 2024 legislative session Senate Bill 227 was introduced, a bill that would have required the establishment of an e-cigarette directory based on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) premarket tobacco application status of the e-cigarette product. The establishment of an e-cigarette directory is a waste of state resources and is a tactic of “Big Tobacco” to divert attention from proven evidence-based strategies. The FDA already maintains a database of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes that are legally allowed to be sold. Adopting such a bill would have not added any public health benefits. Thankfully, the bill died in committee when the legislature adjourned for the year.

The state continues to see declines in our adult smoking rates. Cigarette use has gradually declined among Indiana adults since 2017. According to the 2024 Indiana Adult Tobacco survey, Indiana’s current adult cigarette use rate is 14% which is slightly above the national rate of 10.8%. Although tobacco use has declined among Indiana adults, certain populations such as the LBGTQ community and people of color are still disproportionately impacted by tobacco. In May of 2024, we saw the opening of our first smokefree casino in Indiana.

2025 is a budget year in Indiana. Our General Assembly has the power to provide our state’s Tobacco Prevention and Cessation Commission with the necessary funding to effectively reach all Hoosiers and raise our cigarette tax by $2.00 taking us from one of the lowest in the Midwest to one of the highest. The American Lung Association will continue to advocate for comprehensive local and state laws that eliminate smoking in all public places and workplaces as well.

Indiana Facts
Healthcare Costs Due to Smoking: $2,930,404,456
Adult Smoking Rate: 14.50%
Adult Tobacco Use Rate: 22.90%
High School Smoking Rate: 4.20%
High School Tobacco Use Rate: N/A
Middle School Smoking Rate: 1.90%
Smoking Attributable Deaths per Year: 11,070
Adult smoking and tobacco use data come from CDC’s 2023 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; adult tobacco use includes cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and e-cigarettes. High school smoking rate is taken from CDCs 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. Middle school smoking data are taken from the 2018 Indiana Youth Tobacco Survey. A current high school tobacco use rate is not available for this state.

Health impact information is taken from the Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Morbidity and Economic Costs (SAMMEC) software. Smoking-attributable deaths reflect average annual estimates for the period 2005-2009 and are calculated for persons aged 35 years and older. Smoking-attributable healthcare expenditures are based on 2004 smoking-attributable fractions and 2009 personal healthcare expenditure data. Deaths and expenditures should not be compared by state.

Indiana Information

Learn more about your state specific legislation regarding efforts towards effective Tobacco Control.

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