National Report: Massachusetts Ranks 35th in Protecting Kids from Tobacco

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Massachusetts ranks 35th nationwide in funding programs that prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a report released today by leading public health organizations. Massachusetts is spending $3.7 million this year on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, which is just 5.6 percent of the $66.9 million recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The report challenges states to do more to fight tobacco use – the nation's leading cause of preventable death – and make the next generation tobacco-free. In Massachusetts, 7.7 percent of high school students smoke, and 2,500 kids become regular smokers each year. Tobacco use claims 9,300 Massachusetts lives and costs the state $4.1 billion in health care bills annually.

Other key findings in the report include:

• Massachusetts will collect $884 million in revenue this year from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend only 0.4 percent of the money on tobacco prevention programs.
  
  
• Tobacco companies spend $117.1 million each year to market their deadly and addictive products in Massachusetts – more than 30 times what the state spends on tobacco prevention. Nationwide, tobacco companies spend $8.9 billion a year on marketing – that's $1 million every hour.

The report – "Broken Promises to Our Children: A State-by-State Look at the 1998 Tobacco Settlement 19 Years Later" – was released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights and Truth Initiative.

The report spotlights the need for stronger tobacco prevention efforts in Massachusetts. The state has been a longtime leader in fighting tobacco use with a high cigarette tax ($3.51 per pack), a comprehensive smoke-free law and one of the first tobacco prevention and cessation program. Unfortunately, repeated budget cuts – there hasn't been a funding increase since 2008 – have severely curtailed the program. In addition to increased funding for tobacco prevention, Massachusetts health advocates are calling on the Legislature to increase the state tobacco age to 21, a move that would reduce tobacco use and save lives.

"Massachusetts can be a leader again in fighting tobacco by increasing funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs and raising the tobacco age to 21," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "As Massachusetts itself has shown, we can win the fight against tobacco and make the next generation tobacco-free, but Massachusetts needs to keep doing its part to help us achieve these goals. Raising the state's tobacco age to 21 would be an excellent step forward."

The U.S. has reduced smoking to record lows – 15.1 percent among adults and 8 percent among high school students. But tobacco use still kills more than 480,000 Americans and costs the nation about $170 billion in health care bills each year.

Today's report also highlights large disparities in who smokes and who suffers from tobacco-related diseases in the United States. Smoking rates are especially high in a swath of 12 states in the Midwest and South, an area called "Tobacco Nation" in a recent Truth Initiative report. Nationwide, smoking rates are highest among people who live below the poverty level and have less education, American Indians/Alaska Natives, LGBT Americans, those who are uninsured or on Medicaid, and those with mental illness. These differences are in large part due to the tobacco industry's targeting of vulnerable populations through advertising, price discounting and other marketing strategies.

By funding tobacco prevention and cessation programs at the CDC's recommended levels, states can reduce tobacco use among all Americans. But most states are falling far short:

• The states will collect $27.5 billion this year from the tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend less than 3 percent of it ($721.6 million) on tobacco prevention programs.
  
  
• The $721.6 million that the states have budgeted for tobacco prevention is a small fraction of the $3.3 billion the CDC recommends. Not a single state funds tobacco prevention programs at CDC-recommended levels, and only two states – California and Alaska – provide more than 90 percent of the recommended funding.
  
  
• States with well-funded, sustained tobacco prevention programs have seen remarkable progress. Florida, with one of the longest-running programs, has reduced its high school smoking rate to 5.2 percent, one of the lowest rates ever reported by any state.

The report and state-specific information can be found at tfk.org/statereport.

SOURCE Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids