Senator Todd Young continued his push to raise the federal minimum tobacco age to 21 in the City of South Bend.

Young joined students and representatives from Smoke-Free St. Joe and the Indiana Chamber at the Salvation Army Kroc Center on Wednesday, May 29, to make his case.

Young outlined statistics in Indiana, where tobacco use continues to be the single-most preventable cause of death and disease.

he stated that Indiana ranks 45th in the nation in percentage of smokers, with a smoking rate of 21.8 percent, and smoking leads to approximately $2.93 billion in annual health care costs in Indiana.

Senator Young recently introduced the Tobacco to 21 Act along with Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Mitt Romney (R-Utah). The bill has received widespread support by health organizations and advocates, and recent polling shows that 75 percent of Hoosiers support raising the legal age.

The South Bend Tribune editorial board endorsed the Tobacco to 21 Act earlier this month.