McConnell and Kaine introduce legislation to raise minimum age to buy tobacco products

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., introduced bipartisan legislation on Monday to raise the federal minimum age to purchase tobacco from 18 to 21 in a move to curtail the growing use of e-cigarettes and tobacco products by teenagers.

The legislation, which was co-sponsored by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., comes as the use of e-cigarettes and vaping products has skyrocketed among minors across the country. While e-cigarettes - like the popular Juul - do not contain tobacco, they do have the addictive substance nicotine and are marketed in a variety of flavors that critics say are meant to appeal to young people.

“We’re in the middle of a national health epidemic,” McConnell said during a speech on the Senate floor. “Youth vaping is a public health crisis.”