The American Heart Association sent out word to Wisconsin media outlets this week that it is backing a new legislative bill that would raise the sales age of tobacco products from 18 years to 21. Calling it Tobacco 21, the AHA sees this legislation as a way to combat the trend of one in five Wisconsin high school students using e-cigarettes.

“Tobacco 21 legislation is a key strategy to reduce this alarming rate, since 18-year-old seniors are often a supply source for their younger classmates,” said Nicole Hudzinski, AHA government relations director. “Tobacco 21 would help remove tobacco products and e-cigarettes from schools altogether, protecting the health of all students.”

The AHA and other health advocates are singing praises for the bill, whose actual name is Senate Bill 364, believing it would help prevent teens from becoming lifelong smokers. Before they launch into a rendition of Queen’s “We are the Champions,” I feel it only prudent to point out that the impact of this bill would be negligible.

First of all, I highly doubt that seniors are the only ones purchasing cigarettes for younger teens to utilize, and making it illegal for those in the 18-20 age range is only going to prompt more people to break the law. It’s currently illegal for anyone under 21 to consume alcohol, but that hasn’t stopped some teens from getting booze from parents, relatives or other adults who believe it won’t do any harm.

If you look at existing laws, stores that sell alcohol and tobacco products are already required to check identification of anyone who looks young before selling, and many of those outlets check everyone’s ID, even if they appear old enough to be someone’s grandfather. Most follow this procedure, and those who don’t strictly enforce the law aren’t likely to change their stripes simply because the selling age has changed.

A look at the proposed amendments to the existing law shows that the only changes are adding the term “vapor products” to cover e-cigarettes and changing any reference for the age of 18 to the age of 21. There is no mention of harsher penalties for those who disobey the law, just an expansion of the potential criminal pool.

Instead of a knee-jerk reaction of simply increasing the age and enjoying the fantasy that it will solve the whole teen smoking problem, perhaps the bill should also look at existing education policies, what’s being done to try and deter young people from smoking in the first place. Growing up, my younger sister and I went through the same drug education programs in school. I never smoked cigarettes. She does and has been a smoker for close to 20 years.

What can be done in the programs to convert more teens to the belief that smoking, whether through traditional cigarettes or vapor gadgets, is something that could potentially kill you? Should the approach change? After all, we see news reports about certain types of foods potentially killing us before our time, the same as tobacco, but how many people are putting down the pizzas and potato chips based on the increasing and often contradictory information?

The Centers for Disease Control report 14% of adults 18 and up were smoking cigarettes in 2017. In 2005, that number was 20.9%. We’re already seeing a massive drop in smokers overall, so what benefit is there to raising the age when current measures seem to be cutting down on the number of people who light up?

About 2.8% of U.S. adults were e-cigarette users in 2017. While e-cig use is on the rise, it’s not just the teens who are lighting up. With claims that e-cigs can be used to help regular cigarette smokers kick the habit slowly, many adults are turning to the vapor doodads and still remaining hooked. The CDC even says on its website that “While e-cigarettes have the potential to benefit some people and harm others, scientists still have a lot to learn about whether e-cigarettes are effective for quitting smoking.” Raising the sale age doesn’t help them.

An outright ban of tobacco, or even just a ban on e-cigarettes, would not be an alternative. Our own national history shows what happened when we tried to outlaw alcohol. It took one constitutional amendment to make it illegal, and then another to repeal said amendment, a lengthy process in both cases. While the AHA and other health agencies might have their hearts in the right place — no pun intended — their heads seem a little off kilter with the proposed SB 364.

I want to see the number of people dying from lung cancer continue to drop. I want to see my sister, who has tried many times in the past to quit, eventually make it through life without constantly having a cigarette in her mouth. Increasing the sale age is not enough, not by a long shot. More thoughtful solutions are required to combat this epidemic, and while SB 364 might save a few lives, it’s just a drop in the bucket compared to the continuing hurricane.