Tell lawmakers that preventing disease saves money
Editor
Dec 15, 2011
Today is a National Day of Action on Prevention, a coordinated effort by hundreds of public health advocates around the country to protect critical prevention money in the new health reform law from deep cuts.
Proposals now moving forward on Capitol Hill would cut the prevention fund by two-thirds or more–just when evidence is mounting that proven prevention programs, especially those to keep kids from smoking and help smokers quit, pay big returns by reducing health care costs.
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posted December 15, 2011
But new industry tactics to hook kids include smokeless tobacco and "little cigars"
Editor
Dec 14, 2011
Cigarette smoking among American youth has dropped to record lows, with just 11.7 percent of kids in grades 8, 10 and 12 reporting that they smoked in the past month.
The annual Monitoring the Future survey released today shows that since youth smoking rates peaked in the mid-1990s, they have dropped dramatically — by 71 percent among eighth graders, 61 percent among students in 10th grade and 49 percent among those in 12th grade.
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posted December 14, 2011
Sweet flavors and low prices entice kids to smoke "little cigars"
Editor
Dec 13, 2011
The tobacco industry has maneuvered around marketing restrictions aimed at protecting youth and found yet another way to hook kids when they're young: Flavored "little cigars" that are so cheap kids can easily afford them, and so sweet with kid-friendly flavors that some young smokers believe they're less addictive than cigarettes.
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posted December 13, 2011
Tobacco use still responsible for one of five deaths in U.S.
Editor
Dec 9, 2011
Slow progress in bringing smoking rates down, coupled with dramatic increases in obesity and diabetes, mean the nation's overall health didn't improve in the past year.
United Health Foundation’s annual report, America’s Health Rankings, ranks states based on progress in fighting the causes of chronic diseases that are overburdening the health care system and driving up costs. States that showed the most improvement this year were New York and New Jersey — both of which advanced because of strides in reducing smoking.
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posted December 09, 2011
Insurance coverage, funding cessation programs make a huge difference for health
Editor
Dec 7, 2011
States that require comprehensive insurance coverage for treatments that help smokers quit and adequately fund cessation services such as quit lines are the most “quit friendly” places to live, according to a new report by the American Lung Association.
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posted December 07, 2011
Lax enforcement of ban on sales to kids drives epidemic among young people
Editor
Dec 1, 2011
BBC World's innovative series The Health Show will broadcast a report this weekend examining India's daunting problem of tobacco use among children and its shocking consequences for health.
Young people in India commonly use gutka, a carcinogenic cocktail of flavored smokeless tobacco and additives. Extremely cheap and easily purchased by children and teenagers, an estimated 5 million kids are addicted to the product. It's responsible for 90 percent of oral cancer cases in India.
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posted December 01, 2011
Less than two cents of every dollar in tobacco revenue used to combat tobacco use
Editor
Nov 30, 2011
States have slashed funding for programs to reduce tobacco use by 12 percent in the past year and by 36 percent over the past four years, threatening the nation’s progress against tobacco, according to a report released today by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and other public health organizations.
The states this year will collect a near-record $25.6 billion in revenue from the 1998 state tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend only 1.8 percent of it — $456.7 million — on programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit. In other words, the states are spending less than two cents of every dollar in tobacco revenue to fight tobacco use.
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posted November 30, 2011
Coalition to Knock Tobacco Out of the Park gets baseball to start snuffing out tobacco
Editor
Nov 22, 2011
Major League Baseball and the players' union have taken an historic first step toward getting tobacco out of the ballgame by placing significant limits on smokeless tobacco at the ballpark and whenever players are around fans.
Under the new contract agreement that MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association announced, whenever fans are at the ballpark, players, manager and coaches will no longer be able to carry a tobacco tin or package in their uniform pocket, or anywhere on their bodies.
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posted November 22, 2011
Countries act to reduce smoking, protect everyone from secondhand smoke
Marina Carter, International Press Secretary
Nov 18, 2011
Marking five years of significant achievements in global tobacco control, Bloomberg Philanthropies has released a report on the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use that shows ground-breaking progress in reducing tobacco use and protecting everyone from secondhand smoke.
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posted November 18, 2011
Administration has taken historic action against leading cause of preventable death
Editor
Nov 17, 2011
Today is the American Cancer Society's Great American Smokeout, and President Obama is marking the occasion with a video underscoring his Administration's commitment to winning the fight against tobacco — the nation's leading cause of preventable death.
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posted November 17, 2011
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