National Report: New York Ranks 20th in Protecting Kids from Tobacco

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Dec 11, 2014, 09:00 ET

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- New York ranks 20th in the country in funding programs that prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a national report released today by a coalition of public health organizations.

Key findings for New York include:

New York spends $39.3 million per year on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, which is 19.4 percent of the $203 million recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
New York will collect $2.1 billion in revenue this year from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes but will spend only 1.9 percent of the money on tobacco prevention programs.
Tobacco companies spend $213.5 million per year to market their products in New York – 5.4 times what the state spends on tobacco prevention.

In New York, tobacco annually claims 28,200 lives and costs the state $10.4 billion in health care bills.

The report, titled "Broken Promises to Our Children: A State-by-State Look at the 1998 State Tobacco Settlement 16 Years Later," was released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Lung Association, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights.

New York has been a national leader in the fight against tobacco with the highest state cigarette tax ($4.35 per pack), a comprehensive smoke-free law and a once well-funded tobacco prevention program. As a result, New York reduced its high school smoking rate from 31.8 percent in 1999 to 10.6 percent in 2013.

However, New York has significantly cut funding for tobacco prevention since 2008, when funding stood at $85.5 million, and is now providing less than one-fifth of what the CDC recommends.

"New York has been a real leader in fighting tobacco, but the state's progress is at risk unless it restores funding for programs that prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "New York knows from its own experience that tobacco prevention is a smart investment that saves lives and health care dollars. New York's kids and taxpayers will pay the price unless the state restores funding for tobacco prevention."

Nationally, the report finds that:

Most states fail to adequately fund tobacco prevention and cessation programs. The states will collect $25.6 billion this year from the tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes but will spend only 1.9 percent of it ($490.4 million) on tobacco prevention programs.
States are falling woefully short of the CDC's recommended funding levels for tobacco prevention programs. Altogether, the states budgeted just 14.8 percent of the $3.3 billion the CDC recommends. Only two states – Alaska and North Dakota – are funding tobacco prevention programs at CDC-recommended levels.

Evidence shows tobacco prevention and cessation programs work to reduce smoking, save lives and save money. One study found that during the first 10 years of its tobacco prevention program, the state of Washington saved more than $5 in tobacco-related hospitalization costs for every $1 spent on the program.

Tobacco use is the No. 1 cause of preventable death in the United States, killing more than 480,000 people and costing the nation at least $289 billion in health care bills and lost productivity each year.

The full report and state-specific information can be found at www.tobaccofreekids.org/statereport.

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SOURCE Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids