(CNN) As of Wednesday, anyone looking to purchase tobacco and e-cigarette products in New York must be 21 years old.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo this summer signed the legislation in a bid to combat health threats stemming from the use of these products.

New York State Police is partnering with the Department of Health to conduct undercover investigations on retailers selling vaping products to underage youth, according to a press release.

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"The goal of this law is simple: to prevent cigarettes and vaping products from getting into the hands of our youth, creating an addiction to a deadly habit," Cuomo said in a statement earlier this month. "We are taking aggressive action to make sure the decades of progress we've made to combat tobacco addiction is not undone by a sharp rise in e-cigarette use among younger New Yorkers."

According to New York Department of Health data, nearly 27% of high school students in the state are now using e-cigarettes. In September, New York became the first US state to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes and nicotine e-liquids to combat the increase in young people using vape products.