Portland, OR - Oregon has made significant progress in reducing tobacco use, meeting or exceeding all three tobacco-reduction goals established for 2017–2025, according to a new Oregon Health Authority (OHA) report.  The report, Evaluating the Impact of Statewide Policies on Tobacco Use and Sales, examines trends in tobacco use and sales before and after Oregon implemented three major statewide tobacco policies: Tobacco 21, which raised the legal minimum age to purchase tobacco and nicotine products; increased tobacco taxes through Ballot Measure 108; and Tobacco Retail Licensing, which requires Oregon retailers to obtain a license to sell tobacco and nicotine products.  The report found:  Youth cigarette smoking declined substantially. In 2024, 1% of Oregon eighth graders and 2.8% of 11th graders reported current cigarette use, down from 4.3% and 8.8%, respectively, in 2015.  Adult cigarette smoking declined. The percentage of Oregon adults who smoked cigarettes fell from 17.1% in 2016 to 11% in 2024, exceeding the state goal of 13.3%.  Cigarette sales declined. Annual per-capita cigarette sales fell from 38.3 packs in 2016 to 21 packs in 2024, surpassing the state goal of 34 or fewer packs per person.  Youth e-cigarette use declined. Current e-cigarette use among eighth graders fell from 9.3% in 2015 to 4.1% in 2024; among 11th graders, it fell from 17.1% to 9%.  Adult e-cigarette use increased through 2023 before declining in 2024. E-cigarette use and sales among adults increased over much of the evaluation period, highlighting the changing tobacco and nicotine market.  Tobacco use remains one of the leading preventable causes of death and disease in Oregon, so these declines represent meaningful progress,” said Dean Sidelinger, M.D., M.S.Ed., health officer and state epidemiologist.  “At the same time, we know that not everyone in Oregon has benefited equally from that progress. Continuing to reduce tobacco-related disease will require sustained attention to the communities most affected and to the rapidly changing nicotine marketplace.”