Tobacco & Vaping 101: Washington, D.C.

Lawmakers are often bombarded with misinformation on the products used by adults in their state. This annual analysis provides up-to-date data on the adults who use cigarettes and e-cigarette products in Washington, D.C.. This information aslo includes data on youth use, impacts of e-cigarettes and analyses of existing tobacco monies.

Key Points: 

• In 2022, an estimated 58,017 adults (10.5 percent) were currently smoking. This is an 11.6 percent increase from 2021 and represents 6,316 additional adults smoking.
• In 2022 (among all Washington, D.C. adults), 6.7 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds, 11.6 percent of 25–44-year-olds, 14.5 percent of 45–64-year-olds, and 6.5 percent of adults aged 65 years or older were currently smoking combustible cigarettes.
• Among all adults earning $25,000 or less in 2022, 28.8 percent were currently smoking compared to only six percent of adults earning $50,000 or more.
• Among all smoking adults in Washington, D.C. in 2022, 58.6 percent were Black, 18.9 percent were White, 11.1 percent were Hispanic, eight percent were Multiracial (non-Hispanic), and 3.4 percent were Asian.
• In 2022, 29,008 Washington, D.C. adults (5.3 percent) were currently using e-cigarettes. This a 10.4 percent increase from 2021 and represents 2,886 additional adults vaping.
• Among all vaping adults in Washington, D.C. in 2022, 28.3 percent were 18 to 24 years old, 53.6 percent were 25 to 44 years old, 13.4 percent were 45 to 64 years old and 4.6 percent were 65 years or older.
• In 2021, for every one Washington, D.C. high school student who was smoking, more than 80 adults were currently using cigarettes.
• In 2021, for every one Washington, D.C. high school student who was vaping, more than 12 adults were currently using e-cigarettes.
• The introduction of e-cigarettes has not led to increases in cigarette smoking, but rather, correlates with significant declines in smoking rates among young adults.
• Between 2012 and 2018, smoking rates among Washington, D.C. adults aged 18 to 24 years old decreased by 77.6 percent. Unfortunately, in recent years, rates have increased.
• Cigarette excise taxes in Washington, D.C. disproportionately impact low income and low educated persons, while failing to significantly reduce smoking rates among that class.
• The percentage of Washington, D.C. adults earning $25,000 or less that were smoking increased by 1.9 percent between 2018 and 2022, while the percent of adults earning $50,000 or more that were smoking decreased by 13.5 percent during the same period.
• Among Washington, D.C. adults who did not graduate high school, smoking rates decreased by 6.4 percent, and rates among adults with a college degree decreased by 15.3 percent.
• Washington, D.C. woefully underfunds programs to prevent youth use of tobacco and/or vapor products and help adults quit smoking, while simultaneously receiving millions of dollars from the pockets of the adults who smoke. In 2022, for every $1 the state received in tobacco monies, it spent $0.03 on tobacco control efforts.