Comprehensive tobacco prevention programs are saving lives and money. Every state should have one.

The Problem
It’s a deadly formula: A highly addictive product that is aggressively marketed in ways that influence kids by an industry that is essentially unregulated. The tobacco companies now claim they’ve changed and no longer market to kids. But studies show that after the 1998 state tobacco settlement, tobacco advertising and marketing actually increased in magazines popular with kids and in convenience stores frequented by kids.

Tobacco use is a pediatric epidemic. More than 3,000 kids become regular smokers every day. One-third of them will die prematurely from tobacco-caused disease. Nearly 90 percent of all smokers begin at or before age 18.

Tobacco is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, killing more than 400,000 people every year. Tobacco causes nearly one out of every three deaths from cancer, one out of every five deaths from heart disease and nearly 90 percent of lung cancer cases.

The Solution
As a result of the 1998 tobacco settlement, every state now has a unique opportunity to protect kids, save lives and reduce the costs we all pay to treat sick smokers.

States are getting millions – in some cases billions – of dollars each year from the settlement. If they invest a significant portion of this money in comprehensive tobacco prevention programs, they can prevent kids from starting to smoke and help adults quit.

The evidence is clear: Comprehensive tobacco prevention programs work. States must act now.

“Of all the kids alive in the country today, 5 million are expected to die prematurely from tobacco use. In MA we've developed a vaccine. If I was a state legislature I would grab it and inoculate every kid in my state.”

— Dr. Gregory Connolly,
Director, Massachusetts
Tobacco Control Program

Tobacco Prevention Programs Work
Tobacco prevention programs are a proven solution to this pediatric epidemic. Several states have implemented such programs and have seen dramatic results. These programs are not just reducing smoking; they are saving money and saving lives.

California
California has cut tobacco consumption by 50 percent compared to a much smaller reduction nationally and resulted in one million fewer smokers since it began its program in 1990. Lung and bronchial cancer rates have been cut by 14 percent, and more than 33,000 deaths from heart disease have been prevented.

California saved $390 million in the first seven years of its program by reducing heart attacks and strokes caused by smoking. It also saved $100 million by reducing the number of pregnant women who smoke. (California Department of Health Services)

Florida
Smoking rates declined by 40 percent among middle school students and 18 percent among high school students, resulting in 50,000 fewer youth smokers. (Florida Department of Health)

Oregon
Since 1996, smoking rates are down by 41 percent among eighth graders and by 21 percent among 11th graders. (Oregon Health Division)

Mississippi
In the first year of its program, Mississippi smoking rates were reduced 21 percent among public middle school students and 10 percent among public high school students. (Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi)

Massachusetts
Since the start of this program in 1993, total tobacco consumption has fallen at almost four times the rate of the rest of the country. (Abt Assoc. Inc., study)

Direct health care costs have been reduced by $85 million annually, more than twice as much as the state spends on tobacco prevention. (MIT study)

Arizona
Since 1996, smoking rates have been cut by 21 percent. (Arizona Department of Health Services)

Elements of Comprehensive Programs
In order to be successful, tobacco prevention programs must be comprehensive, well-funded and sustained over time. The key to success is a comprehensive program that includes five essential elements:

• Public education
• Community Programs
• School Programs
• Helping smokers quit
• Enforcement of laws prohibiting sales to minors

Public Education
The tobacco industry spends more than $18 million a day on a marketing barrage that attracts youth to its deadly products. While even a well-funded tobacco prevention program cannot spend that amount, public education including anti-smoking advertising and public relations messages can effectively reduce tobacco use and counter pro-smoking messages.

Community Programs
Community programs are at the heart of comprehensive tobacco prevention programs. Through local organizations such as health departments, community groups and businesses, they reach people where they live, work, play and worship to reinforce the messages of the public education campaign and deliver services.

Community programs include direct counseling for prevention and cessation, youth education, tailored multi-cultural outreach, work-site programs, training for health professionals and enforcement of local youth access ordinances.

School Programs
When included in comprehensive efforts, the best school-based programs have been shown to significantly reduce smoking rates. School programs must include curricula proven to be effective, along with tobacco-free policies, training for teachers, programs for parents and cessation services. In addition to being taught about the dangers of tobacco use, students in these programs learn life skills, media literacy and refusal skills to help resist peer influence and tobacco marketing.

Helping Smokers Quit
Most smokers want to quit, but they need help. Cessation services and products that are readily available and affordable can give them that helping hand.

Services can be delivered through healthcare providers, schools, government agencies, work sites, community organizations and telephone quitlines. The most effective programs utilize multiple approaches, including pharmaceutical treatments, clinician-provided social support and skills training.

Enforcement of Laws Against Sales to Minors
Minors buy a half-billion packs of cigarettes a year. Rigorous enforcement of the laws against sales to minors can make a difference. Frequent compliance checks and meaningful penalties for violators who sell to minors reduce sales to youth and decrease tobacco use among kids.