National Report: West Virginia Ranks 22nd in Protecting Kids from Tobacco

States Challenged to Join Florida in Reducing Youth Smoking to Record Low

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Dec 11, 2014, 09:00 ET

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- West Virginia ranks 22nd 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.

The report challenges states to do more by shining the spotlight on Florida, which has cut its high school smoking rate to a record low 7.5 percent. The report details the lives and health care dollars each state could save if it brought its teen smoking rate down to Florida's.

If West Virginia reduced its high school smoking rate from the current 19.6 percent to 7.5 percent, it would prevent 68,520 kids from becoming adult smokers, saving 24,070 lives and $1.2 billion in future health care costs.

In West Virginia, tobacco annually claims 4,300 lives and costs the state $1.00 billion in health care bills.

Other key findings for West Virginia include:

West Virginia spends $4.9 million per year on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, which is 17.8 percent of the $27.4 million recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
West Virginia will collect $170.1 million in revenue this year from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes but will spend only 2.9 percent of the money on tobacco prevention programs.
Tobacco companies spend $120.4 million per year to market their products in West Virginia – 25 times what the state spends on tobacco prevention.

Today's 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.

To reduce tobacco use and its terrible health and financial toll in West Virginia, health advocates are calling on state leaders to increase the state cigarette tax by $1.50 per pack, along with a similar increase to the tax on other tobacco products. Some of the revenue should be used to increase funding for urgently needed tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

"West Virginia has the highest smoking rates in the country, so it is critical that the state raise its tobacco tax and increase funding for tobacco prevention programs," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "These strategies are proven to reduce tobacco use and its terrible toll in health, lives and dollars. Until West Virginia leaders act, the state's kids and taxpayers will continue to pay a high price."

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