National Report: Minnesota Ranks 11th in Protecting Kids from Tobacco

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Dec 11, 2014, 10:00 ET

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Minnesota ranks 11th 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 Minnesota include:

Minnesota is spending $22.3 million this year on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, which is 42.2 percent of the $52.9 million recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Minnesota will collect $1.4 billion in revenue this year from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes but will spend only 1.6 percent of the money on tobacco prevention programs.
Tobacco companies spend $164.7 million per year to market their products in Minnesota – over seven times what the state spends on tobacco prevention.

In Minnesota, tobacco annually claims 5,900 lives and costs the state $2.5 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.

Minnesota recently reported that its smoking rate among high school students fell from 18.1 percent in 2011 to 10.6 percent in 2014, the steepest drop ever recorded in the state. This decline followed extensive efforts to reduce smoking in Minnesota, including a $1.60 per pack cigarette tax increase in 2013, a comprehensive smoke-free law and long-running programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit.

"Minnesota is setting an example for the nation with its strong and sustained efforts to reduce tobacco use, the number one cause of preventable death," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "Minnesota's efforts are paying off by reducing smoking, saving lives and saving health care dollars. Tobacco prevention is a smart investment that Minnesota should continue to make."

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