Other Policy
Research
Anti-smoking efforts saved 795,000 lives over 25 years: Study
A recent analysis has found that tobacco control programs and policies have resulted in changes in smoking patterns that prevented approximately 800,000 lung cancer deaths in the United States during the years 1975-2000. The researchers note that lung cancer is just one of the many negative health outcomes associated with smoking, so the total number of lives saved is much greater than the study results indicate. The report concludes that while the effects of tobacco control efforts at the end of the 20th century are dramatic, these 800,000 lives saved are only 30% of the lung cancer deaths that could have been prevented, had all cigarette smoking stopped in 1965 after the first Surgeon General’s report on smoking was released. Click here to read a summary of the findings, or click here to read the full study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
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Reports
Investing in America's Health report available
Trust for America's Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) have released the annual Investing in America’s Health report, which finds that federal funding for public health remains at a relatively flat and insufficient level. At the state level, according to a TFAH analysis, 40 states decreased their public health budgets from FY 2009-10 to FY 2010-11, 30 states decreased budgets for a second year in a row and 15 for three years in a row. Click here to access the full report, which includes profiles of several successful local prevention programs.
Tobacco-Free Toolkit for Community Health Facilities available
The Smoking Cessation Leadership Center (SCLC) is now offering a new national toolkit for creating and implementing tobacco-free policies in community healthcare settings. This toolkit was developed for a broad continuum of public health care organizations, especially those serving persons with mental illnesses and addictions. The materials are intended for administrators, direct providers, and support staff of organizations considering or implementing tobacco-free policies. Click here to access the toolkit.
Tobacco use prevention and control publications available
The National Association of Local Boards of Health (NALBOH) has several tobacco use prevention and control publications available for free download or purchase through the NALBOH store. Topics of featured publications include increasing board of health members’ capacity to implement tobacco prevention and control policies, clean indoor air, addressing tobacco-related disparities, and smoke-free policy development in multi-unit housing. Click here to gain access to the publications.
Tobacco prevention advocates tout poll to restore funding (NC)
The North Carolina Alliance for Health has released poll results showing that 74% of North Carolina voters want the state to continue spending $17 million per year on youth tobacco prevention and smoking cessation programs, although support dropped to 60% when participants were asked to balance tobacco prevention funding against the state’s tough budget situation. North Carolina’s state Division of Public Health tobacco prevention program will lose all state funding unless lawmakers restore it in the state budget. If the money is not restored, the tobacco program will only be able to operate until June 30, 2012. Click here to read more, or click here for further details from the North Carolina Alliance for Health about the status of tobacco use prevention funding in the state.
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State Policy
Bill allows police to take cigarettes from kids (HI)
A bill currently in a Hawaii House committee would give the power to police officers to confiscate tobacco products from minors under the age of eighteen. Minors will not be penalized if they are caught smoking, but it would be illegal for them to use any form of tobacco. However, under the bill, minors can be fined between $10 and $50 for purchasing tobacco products. Click here to read more and click here to track SB 1168.
Bill passes to make e-cigarette sales to minors illegal (ID)
The Idaho Senate has unanimously passed a bill that will prohibit minors under the age of eighteen from buying e-cigarettes. The bill is aimed at protecting minors from becoming addicted to nicotine and shielding them from the potential negative health effects of e-cigarettes. Click here to read more. According to the website of the Idaho Legislature, the governor has signed House Bill 405 into law, and the policy will become effective on July 1, 2012.
Idaho officials join other states cracking down on roll-your-own cigarette operations (ID)
The Idaho Senate State Affairs Committee has passed a bill that imposes a strict permitting process on businesses that would like to have roll-your-own cigarette machines. This is a measure to protect the payments tobacco companies are making to the state through the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, which have proven to be lucrative to the state. Although cigarette rolling machines have not yet been used in retail stores in the state, officials are acting preemptively, having seen the popularity of the machines and resulting cigarette tax losses in other states. Deputy Attorney General DeLange says that a failure to monitor the machines could endanger the tobacco settlement money and could allow businesses to avoid paying tobacco taxes. Click here to read the full story, or click here for additional background information about the legislation.
Governor signs law banning minors in smoke shops (UT)
Utah Governor Herbert has signed a law that will prohibit anyone under the age of nineteen from going into a specialized tobacco retail store. The bill broadens the state’s law prohibiting tobacco sales to minors, by also making it illegal for individuals under nineteen to buy tobacco paraphernalia such as pipes or hookahs. Click here to read more about the bill.
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International
Online tobacco ads stubbed out (Australia)
In February, the Australian Senate passed legislation that restricts online tobacco advertising. Online tobacco retailers will have to put health warnings on their websites and will not be able to use words such as “cheap” and “tax-free” when promoting their products. Online tobacco retailers will also have to make their websites age-restricted, meaning that children under the age of eighteen will be unable to access these websites. The Australian Health Minister hopes the new policy will help decrease the number of people who smoke. Click here to read a press release from the Australian Minister for Health about the online advertising restrictions.
Australia targeted in WTO complaint over ban on tobacco logos (Australia, Ukraine)
A law passed in December 2011 will require tobacco companies to ensure that all tobacco products are sold in plain packaging by December 1, 2012 in order to reduce the appeal of tobacco products and highlight the health warnings on the packages. The plain packaging law has caused Ukraine to complain to the World Trade Organization (WTO) over intellectual property and trademarking rules. The governments will first meet for at least two months to resolve the dispute, after which Ukraine may ask WTO judges to rule. Click here to read about Ukraine’s complaint to the WTO, or click here to learn more about Australia’s plain packaging law, the first of its kind in the world.
Brazil bans flavored cigarettes (Brazil)
Brazil has banned flavored cigarettes and tobacco additives to prevent these flavors from drawing youth into addiction to tobacco products. According to a study performed in Brazil, 17,000 children between the ages of thirteen and fifteen who smoke already prefer flavored cigarettes. Brazil hopes that banning these products will discourage children from smoking initiation. Click here to read more, or click here for additional commentary on tobacco control in Brazil.
Palauan chiefs declare tobacco illegal (Palau)
The Palau Council of Chiefs has declared tobacco and tobacco products illegal. The chiefs of this Pacific island nation are calling on the general public to join forces in efforts, campaigns and programs against tobacco, and are urging businesses to look for sources of revenue besides selling tobacco. Although many locals have recently started chewing tobacco and 50.7% of children use tobacco, the chiefs stress that tobacco use is not part of Palau’s culture, as a practice introduced by foreign occupying nations. The chiefs hope that the national government will take action to eliminate tobacco to protect the health of the population. Although the Chiefs’ declaration does not have the weight of law, this public health statement has the potential to weaken the social norm of tobacco use. Read more here.
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