Campaign For Tobacco-Free Kids Applauds Indiana General Assembly For Passing Strong Tobacco Prevention Plan

Washington, DC - The CAMPAIGN FOR TOBACCO-FREE KIDS applauds the Indiana General Assembly for taking the lead in tobacco prevention and passing legislation to allocate $35 million dollars toward a comprehensive tobacco prevention program for Indiana. The General Assembly passed the legislation late Friday, March 3.

“Indiana legislators have put the health of Indiana’s children first and have kept with the original intent of the 1998 multi-state tobacco settlement,” said Matthew L. Myers, president of the CAMPAIGN FOR TOBACCO-FREE KIDS. “This legislation will help to reduce Indiana’s high smoking rate - currently tenth highest in the United States - and ultimately save the lives of thousands of Hoosier kids and millions of dollars in Indiana taxpayers’ money.”

Indiana is the second major legislative victory for tobacco prevention in the year 2000. Earlier this year, Ohio’s General Assembly voted to allocate more than $1 billion of its settlement funds for prevention and cessation programs. As the result of 1999 legislative actions, a total of 10 states have now devoted substantial settlement funds to tobacco prevention, including Minnesota, Wisconsin, Washington, Hawaii, New Jersey, Vermont, Maryland and Massachusetts.

“Our thanks go to Senator Larry Borst, Representative Charlie Brown, the Indiana General Assembly, and all the Indiana grassroots organizations that worked so hard to pass this historic legislation,” said Myers. “The action of Indiana’s legislators will serve as a model for other states.”