After last November's referendum approving the recreational use of marijuana, the Massachusetts legislature is setting the rules and regulations for how the new law will be implemented. That discussion includes the possibility of setting age 21 as the legal minimum for purchasing marijuana, alcohol and tobacco products. Under current state law, 18 year olds can buy cigarettes. But public health officials are calling for raising the age to 21, as Pittsfield and many other local communities have already done.

In this edition of the Berkshire Eagle podcast, host Mark Mills speaks about raising the state smoking age to 21 with Gina Armstrong, director of public health for the city of Pittsfield, and with Berkshire Eagle editorial page editor Bill Everhart.