National

New report finds nearly half of states falling short on policies to prevent and fight cancer
The American Cancer Society has released a new report that describes states’ progress in addressing six legislative priorities related to cancer prevention. State and federal funding for tobacco prevention was also reported. Two of the six priority areas covered in the report, smoke-free laws and tobacco taxes, were related to tobacco prevention and control. No state reached a benchmark in all six issues, and only two states—Maryland and Massachusetts—reached benchmarks in five of the six priority legislative areas in the state-level fight against cancer. Eight states hadn’t achieved any of the benchmarks. The report titled, “How Do You Measure Up?: A Progress Report on State Legislative Activity to Reduce Cancer Incidence and Mortality,” was released at the National Conference of State Legislatures annual meeting. Click here to read more, or click here to access the full report.

Save lives and money: Help people on Medicaid quit tobacco
The Partnership for Prevention’s Action to Quit program has released a comprehensive state-by-state analysis of Medicaid coverage of tobacco cessation, providing guidance to states on necessary steps to provide a comprehensive cessation benefit in accordance with recommendations of the United States Public Health Service. With the recent passage of health reform (Affordable Care Act) requiring all state Medicaid programs to provide comprehensive tobacco cessation care to pregnant women, there is a unique opportunity for states to extend coverage to the entire Medicaid population. The report provides a roadmap of key steps states should take to provide their Medicaid populations with access to a comprehensive tobacco cessation benefit. Click here to download the guide, or click here to view a full list of resources.

top

Back to Table of Contents