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View this as a webpage
May 2026
This is your bimonthly digest of news and new resources for Minnesota professionals committed to reducing the harms of commercial tobacco use.
In this issue:
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The 2026 Escape the Vape Video Challenge had over 260 students from 29 Minnesota schools creating 30-second videos to educate their peers on the dangers of vaping.
Public voting opened on April 8, and closed April 22. Over 1500 votes were cast to choose the winners for each division. Each first-place winning video will be awarded a $500 cash prize. Their schools will also receive $250 each.
Middle school winners
First place: "Choose Your Sound – Don't Vape!" by Calvi Duriex, Connor Fenton, Liam Erickson at Oltman Middle School
Second place: "Do Vapers Lie?" by Parker Yang and Jackson Merryfield at White Bear Lake Central Middle School
Third place: "Animal Analogy" by Cooper Dodge and Grayden Schweich at Hastings Middle School
High school winners
First place: "Don't Drink Paint, Don't Hit the Vape" by Josh Cook and Patrick Linder at Minnehaha Academy
Second place: "Once Choice, Real Consequences" by Anthony Dosev at Minnetonka High School
Third place: "Don’t Vape Away Your Season" by Nabiha Kashif, Brynn Williams, Tyler Sperl, and Lauren Wedward at Eagan High School
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The Minnesota Department of Health is proud to announce the selection of three new Quit Partner Ambassadors:
Chosen through a competitive process, the Quit Partner™ Ambassadors will play an important role in raising awareness of Quit Partner™, Minnesota’s free family of services to help people quit smoking, vaping or using other commercial tobacco products.
Ambassadors will help promote Quit Partner’s free tools and support for quitting commercial tobacco through local events, culturally relevant outreach, and community-led conversations. This work is especially focused on communities that have been disproportionately impacted by commercial tobacco use and targeted marketing by the tobacco industry. Through these partnerships, we are investing in community-driven approaches that elevate local voices, reduce barriers to access, and support healthier futures across Minnesota.
Learn more about Quit Partner™ and ways to promote quitting in your community.
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Commercial tobacco use can be one of the hardest habits to break, and nobody understands that better than people who have successfully quit. Now, Minnesotans who have quit have an opportunity to help others quit too.
Ahead of World No Tobacco Day on May 31, Quit Partner™ is asking people across the state to share the real-life strategies that helped them quit smoking, vaping, or chewing tobacco, so anyone else looking to quit can try new tips and tricks on their quit journey.
These tips don’t have to be groundbreaking. Whether it's a way to manage cravings, handle social situations, or simply make it through a difficult day, even small strategies can make a big difference for someone trying to quit.
Submit your advice or encourage others to submit theirs. Quit Partner™ will compile your tips and share them online for others to try.
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The Minnesota Department of Health is proud to announce the selection of three new grantees to work on community-driven approaches to address commercial tobacco use:
Chosen through a competitive process, these grantees will work with community partners to train local leaders on the harms of commercial tobacco use and resources for promoting quitting and treatment. Grantees will integrate treatment services and referrals across their organizations. They will also conduct community assessments to assess available treatment services and to adapt services and resources to promote treatment for their community.
This effort is made possible with funding from the state of Minnesota's 2023 Settlement Agreement with JUUL Labs, Inc. and with input from communities across the state. From 2023-2024, the Minnesota Department of Health conducted a statewide input process to ask how settlement funds should be used. In addition to enacting stronger policies for preventing commercial tobacco use, community feedback prioritized enhanced efforts to promote quitting and treatment, including:
- Helping youth and young adults quit using commercial tobacco products, including e-cigarettes
- Providing culturally tailored and culturally appropriate treatment support
Learn more about our grant programs, Minnesota’s 2023 JUUL Settlement Agreement, and other efforts to prevent and treat commercial tobacco use in Minnesota.
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On April 28, the Plymouth City Council approved ending the sale of all flavored commercial tobacco products to “put the health and wellbeing of youth first.” These new restrictions also include:
- Setting the maximum number of new commercial tobacco retail licenses to zero
- Creating a 500-foot buffer from schools and youth-oriented parks for any new licenses
- Eliminating coupons and price promotions
- Raising annual license fees and increasing penalties for violations
Commercial tobacco use, like smoking and vaping, is a leading cause of preventable death and disease. Among youth, vapes are the most used commercial tobacco product. Youth vape for several reasons, including exposure to widespread marketing, the availability of appealing flavors, and social influences. Flavored vapes – such as fruit, candy, and mint – are especially popular among youth, and most youth start with flavored varieties.
Plymouth joins over 30 other Minnesota communities that have enacted similar restrictions to prevent youth commercial tobacco use, like vaping. Most of the ordinance updates take effect immediately. Restrictions on flavored commercial tobacco product sales start Jan. 1, 2028.
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The Cannabis Research Center at the University of Minnesota is looking for students in grades 8, 9, and 11 to help refine the substance use questions in the Minnesota Student Survey (MSS). Because the MSS is a vital tool for local organizations to address youth substance use, it’s critical the survey questions are clear and relevant to students today.
Share this opportunity with youth and families in your networks:
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Commitment: A one-hour, confidential virtual interview providing feedback on survey questions
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Compensation: Students receive a $40 gift card for their participation
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Goal: To ensure state data accurately reflects youth experiences, leading to better- resources, and support
To learn more or check eligibility, interested families should email canna...@umn.edu or call 612-624-9166.
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Event: No Menthol Sunday
May 17
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Webinar: The Indian Health System: the Role of State and Local Partners in Advancing Tribal Health Equity
May 18, from noon to 1:30 p.m. Join the Equity Officer Peer Group to register
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Courses: 2026 Public Health Institute
May 18-29
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Webinar: Disability Justice: Access, Communication and Belonging in Health Care and Public Health
May 19, at 2 p.m.
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Training: Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) Training
May 20 at 1 p.m.
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Training: Empowering Youth Providers: Core Skills in Client-Centered Tobacco Treatment
May 20, from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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Conference: 2026 Nonprofit Leadership Conference
May 21
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Webinar: World No Tobacco Day 2026 | Tobacco Industry Tactics Exposed
May 21 at 11 a.m.
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Webinar: Navigating Change in the Public Health Field: Strategies for Resiliency
May 21, at 11 a.m.
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Webinar: Hooked in New Ways: What Parents Need to Know About Youth Nicotine Use
May 21 at 5 p.m.
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Webinar: Leading Through Disruption: Adaptive Leadership Strategies for Substance Misuse Prevention
May 26, from 1 to 3 p.m.
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Webinar: Advocacy Skills for Substance Misuse Prevention Professionals
May 28, from 1:30 to 3 p.m.
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Workshop: Talking about Health in Rural Communities – Kickoff Session
May 28, from 2 to 4:30 p.m.
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Event: Keep Tobacco Sacred Day: Honoring the Sacred, Confronting the Harmful
May 31
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Event: World No Tobacco Day: Unmasking the appeal – countering nicotine and tobacco addiction
May 31
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Conference: CannAct 2026 – A public health – prevention cannabis action conference
June 1-3
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Webinar: Telling Stories with Data: A Crash Course in Data Visualization for Non-Expert Audiences
June 4, from 10 a.m. to noon
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Conference: Lung Mind Alliance’s June Convening
June 4, from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
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Training: Tobacco Treatment Groups as a Healing Process: Exploring the Possibilities
June 4, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
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Conference: National Tribal Tobacco Conference: Reclaiming and Restoring Traditional Tobacco in Today’s World
June 23-24
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Conference: Rural Minnesota Lung Cancer Summit
June 26
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Conference: CADCA’s 25th Annual Mid-Year Training Institute
July 12-16
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Event: Return to First Medicines Annual Gathering
July 28-29
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Event: Minnesota Traditional Sacred Tobacco Day
Aug. 11
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Conference: Chronic Disease Academy: Connect. Engage. Innovate.
Sept. 15-17
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Conference: Many Faces of Community Health
Sept. 29
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Conference: National Prevention Network Conference: Matstering the Craft of Prevention – Where Science and Practice Meet
Sept. 29-30
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Conference: 2026 Minnesota Prevention Program Sharing Conference
Oct. 13-14
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Conference: APHA 2026 Annual Meeting and Expo: Together We Thrive – Health Across the Lifespan
Nov. 1-4
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Event: The Great American Smokeout
Nov. 19
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Communications and media
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Editorial: What the assault on the US Centers for Disease Control’s Office on Smoking and Health means for the USA and Global Public Health | BMJ Journals – Tobacco Control
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Slides: Behavioral Health and Tobacco Product Use | National Partnership on Behavioral Health and Tobacco Use
The Communications Workgroup of the National Partnership on Behavioral Health and Tobacco Use developed a new educational resource: a PowerPoint slide deck that serves as a ready-to-use presentation tool and helps external presenters inform audiences about the harms of commercial tobacco, share treatment resources for individuals with behavioral health conditions, and provide key references with credible citations.
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Article: Old tactics, new products: How Big Tobacco targets women in e-cigarette marketing | Truth Initiative
Since the 1920s, the tobacco industry has used women’s suffrage and equality movements to market cigarettes to women. Today, tobacco companies still use themes of independence, glamour, fun, and wellness to market e-cigarettes to young women.
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Toolkit: Saving Black lives! | African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council (PDF)
This toolkit provides facts, data, and messaging resources to support community education, policy advocacy, and media outreach on the dangers of menthol cigarettes.
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Article: YouTube recommendations expose viewers to pro-tobacco content | Truth Initiative
Many people turn to YouTube for health information, including about tobacco products. However, research finds that some viewers seeking tobacco-related information on YouTube were recommended pro-tobacco videos, even though they started with anti-tobacco content. Stronger regulations are needed to ensure that social media platforms are transparent about their algorithms and have safeguards in place to protect young people from potentially harmful content.
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Watch: The Importance of Listening and Trusted Messengers in Public Health | Public Health Communications Collaborative
Listen to this dynamic discussion on communicating the value of public health in challenging times, the power of trusted messengers and partnerships, and the importance of active listening.
Data and research
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Data: TEEN+ Data Brief – Nicotine Pouches | CDC Foundation (PDF)
Current nicotine pouch use among youth and young adults has quadrupled since 2022. Among those who report current use of nicotine pouches, about 24.8% of youth and young adults under 21 and 54.5% of those 21 or older report using three or more pouches on the days they use pouches. Youth and young adults who report current use of nicotine pouches commonly use mint or wintergreen flavors. Young people report using nicotine pouches in a range of nicotine strengths; some are “double-stacking” pouches.
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Data: Monitoring Sales: Nicotine Pouch Trends | CDC Foundation (PDF)
Nicotine pouch sales in the United States are rapidly increasing, particularly since 2023. Nicotine pouches are sold in a variety of flavors that are appealing to both youth and adults; most U.S. sales are mint flavored products and very few are tobacco flavored. Sales in states that restrict the sale of flavored nicotine pouches are dominated by 1) products marketed as smooth or original but likely contain sweeteners and 2) products which provide a cooling sensation and contain sweeteners.
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Data: TEEN+ Data Snapshot – E-cigarette Flavors | CDC Foundation (PDF)
This snapshot focuses on three measures of flavor use among youth and young adults: first flavor used, flavors ever used, and flavors currently used. Key data points include: Nearly all (92.5%) youth and young adults who ever used e-cigarettes started with a flavored product that was not tobacco flavored – fruit was the top flavor first tried by youth (59.8%) and young adults (48.2%). Fruit, candy, desserts and other sweets (including chocolate) and mint are the most common e-cigarette flavors ever used among youth and young adults. Nearly all (94.6%) youth and young adults who report current e-cigarette use indicate they have used flavored e-cigarettes that were not tobacco flavored in the past 30 days (96.3% of youth and 94.2% of young adults).
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Data: US Tobacco Atlas | American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society released the US Tobacco Atlas, a digital scientific resource which offers comprehensive data and insights on commercial tobacco use, tobacco control policies, and their impact across the country.
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Article: Thirdhand Vape Residue Can Increase Risk for Blood Clotting and Heart Disease | Thirdhand Smoke Resource Center
A recent study by Umphres and colleagues at Texas A&M University reveals that toxic thirdhand vape residue can pose serious cardiovascular risks, even to those who never vape themselves.
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Article: Multiple tobacco and nicotine product use is increasingly common among young people | Truth Initiative
Dual and poly use of tobacco and nicotine products is on the rise, especially among young people, according to this new study. Dual use of cigarettes and e-cigarettes is the most common pattern of use, but oral nicotine pouch use in combination with other products is also increasing. These findings underscore how a rapidly expanding product landscape offers more avenues for nicotine use than ever before.
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Analysis: Association of Vaping-Related Events with Relative Harm Perceptions of E-cigarettes | Nicotine & Tobacco Research
A Nicotine & Tobacco Research analysis of Health Information National Trends Survey data found that from 2012 to 2022, the proportion of survey respondents perceiving e-cigarettes as more harmful than combustible cigarettes increased from 2.8% to 30.4%. Likewise, perceptions of e-cigarettes as less harmful decreased from 50.7% to 16.7%.
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Data: 2024 Minnesota Adult Commercial Tobacco Data: Highlights from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System | Minnesota Department of Health (PDF)
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Analysis: Cigarette and Electronic Cigarette Use Among Adults by Urbanization Level: United States, 2024 | U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PDF)
From the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, this analysis found substantially higher rates of cigarette and e-cigarette use among adults in non-metropolitan areas versus more urbanized areas.
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Article: Monitoring a rapidly changing nicotine market: flavored “smart” vapes, oral nicotine pouches, and stronger disposables | Truth Initiative
The tobacco industry continues to engineer products that appeal to young people, including high-tech “smart” vapes and flavored oral nicotine pouches, while disposable e-cigarettes grow stronger and cheaper. The emergence of new flavored products, such as oral nicotine pouches, combined with the larger amounts of nicotine available in e-cigarettes, is especially concerning as cuts to federal tobacco control programs have weakened systems meant to protect young people from addiction.
Policy and systems change
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Opportunity: Racial Health Equity Legal and Policy Cohort | The Network for Public Health Law
The Network’s Racial Health Equity Legal and Policy Cohort helps participants strengthen strategies, navigate complex legal landscapes, and build durable, equity-centered solutions that serve communities most impacted by structural racism. The Network invites public health and community-based organizations working on projects or issues that prioritize racial health equity to apply for participation in the program. There is no cost to apply or to participate if selected. The deadline for applying is June 26.
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Map: U.S. State Laws Requiring Tobacco-Free Grounds for Mental Health and Substance Use Facilities | Public Health Law Center
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Map: U.S. State Laws Requiring Mental Health and Substance Use Facilities to Provide Tobacco Dependency Treatment in Clinical Practice | Public Health Law Center
As of February 15, 2026, only seven states require that tobacco dependency treatment be included in the clinical practice of mental health facilities (including two with partial requirements). Nine states require that substance use facilities include tobacco dependency treatment.
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Toolkit: Tobacco-free Toolkit for Behavioral Health Agencies | UCSF Smoking Cessation Leadership Center
Thinking about going commercial tobacco-free? Find out what stage of change your facility is at with this interactive online toolkit.
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Article: Discourse about flavored tobacco restrictions on TikTok can undermine progress | Truth Initiative
In a sample of TikTok videos about flavored tobacco restrictions, the content that generated the most views was about how to circumvent newly implemented policies, according to a Truth Initiative study.
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Webpage: Smoke-Free Housing | Minnesota Department of Health
This new webpage outlines information on smoke-free housing policies, how they protect health and reduce costs, what smoke-free protections are already in place in Minnesota, and how communities can strengthen protections for their residents.
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Factsheet: Ending the Sale of All Menthol and Other Flavored Commercial Tobacco Products | Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation
Promoting quitting and treatment
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App: New mobile app from My Life, My Quit™
This new mobile app gives Minnesota teens another way to access free, confidential support to quit vaping or using other nicotine products. Designed with feedback from teens, this app makes quit support more accessible, engaging, and available anytime. The My Life, My Quit™ app is free and available on major mobile app stores.
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Training: Minnesota Tobacco Prevention QuitLogix® Training | Minnesota Department of Health and Quit Partner™
Free, accredited continuing education courses from the Minnesota Department of Health and Quit Partner™, which are designed with busy professionals in mind. They are quick, easy, engaging, and will expand your knowledge base to help you best work with those who use commercial tobacco.
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Factsheet: Greater Access to Commercial Tobacco Treatment Medication and Counseling Will Save Money and Lives | Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation
Retailers and licensing
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Article: Lax enforcement of online e-cigarette sales puts youth at risk | Truth Initaitive Most (88%) online e-cigarette stores appeared to violate policies designed to prevent underage access to e-cigarettes online, according to a study from Truth Initiative. Online stores appeared to fail to request ID, used restricted carriers to ship e-cigarettes, or did not appear to require a signature by an adult over 21 on delivery, violating federal policies.
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Complaints: Report the Sale of Illegal Vaping Products | Office of the Minnesota Attorney General The state of Minnesota provides an online form to report the marketing or sale of illegal flavored e-cigarettes, electronic nicotine delivery systems, and oral nicotine pouch products to the Office of the Minnesota Attorney General.
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Opportunity: Congratulate and Educate: Educational Compliance Checks | Minnesota Department of Human Services and the Association for Nonsmokers – Minnesota (PDF) The Minnesota Department of Human Services, in partnership with the Association for Nonsmokers – Minnesota, is offering an opportunity to conduct educational tobacco compliance checks across the state and to provide one-on-one education on local, state, and federal laws around youth access with tobacco retailers. All compliance checks must be completed by June 30, and funding is available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Youth engagement
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Free help for people in Minnesota
It’s hard to quit smoking, vaping, or using other commercial tobacco products. But there’s good news – many people have quit successfully, and there are medications and strategies to make it easier. In fact, people who use phone coaching and quit medications are twice as likely to successfully quit.
Multiple services are available for residents:
Free tools are resources are also available to help promote quitting and treatment in your community.
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About commercial tobacco use prevention and treatment in Minnesota
The Minnesota Department of Health partners with communities across the state to reduce the harm of commercial tobacco use, like smoking or vaping. Together we’re working to keep Minnesota healthy by preventing initiation among young people, promoting quitting and treatment, eliminating secondhand exposure, and identifying and eliminating disparities.
Learn more at health.mn.gov/tobacco.
To add items to a future newsletter, suggest content for inclusion. For questions about this newsletter, email tob...@state.mn.us.
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