National Report: New Hampshire Ranks Last in Protecting Kids from Tobacco

WASHINGTON, Nov. 30, 2011  /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- New Hampshire is tied for last in the nation in funding programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a national report released today by a coalition of public health organizations.

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New Hampshire is one of five states that budgeted zero state funds for tobacco prevention programs this year.  It is the third straight year that New Hampshire has provided zero funds for tobacco prevention.  The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that New Hampshire provide $19.2 million a year for tobacco prevention programs. Other key findings for New Hampshire include:

• New Hampshire this year will collect $264 million in revenue from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend none of it on tobacco prevention programs.
• The tobacco companies spend $88.5 million a year to market their products in New Hampshire.

The annual report on states' funding of tobacco prevention programs, titled "A Broken Promise to Our Children: The 1998 State Tobacco Settlement 13 Years Later," was released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Lung Association, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights.

In addition to providing no state funds for tobacco prevention, New Hampshire took another step backward in the fight against tobacco by approving a 10-cent reduction in the state's cigarette tax. This move is reducing revenue for the state and making cigarettes more appealing and affordable to kids. 

"Between its failure to fund tobacco prevention and the cigarette tax reduction, New Hampshire is one of the most disappointing states in the nation when it comes to fighting tobacco use," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.  "To make progress, New Hampshire's leaders should raise the cigarette tax and increase funding for tobacco prevention.  Even in these difficult budget times, tobacco prevention is a smart investment that saves lives and saves money by reducing tobacco-related health care costs."

In New Hampshire, 20.8 percent of high school students smoke, and 1,700 more kids become regular smokers each year. Tobacco annually claims 1,700 lives and costs the state $564 million in health care bills.

Nationally, the report finds that most states are failing to adequately fund tobacco prevention and cessation programs. Altogether, the states have cut funding for these programs to the lowest level since 1999, when they first started receiving tobacco settlement payments.  Key national findings of the report include:

• The states this year will collect $25.6 billion from the tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend just 1.8 percent of it – $456.7 million – on tobacco prevention programs. This means the states are spending less than two cents of every dollar in tobacco revenue to fight tobacco use.
• States have cut funding for tobacco prevention programs by 12 percent ($61.2 million) in the past year and by 36 percent ($260.5 million) in the past four years.
• Only two states – Alaska and North Dakota – currently fund tobacco prevention programs at the CDC-recommended level.

The report warns that the nation's progress in reducing smoking is at risk unless states increase funding for programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit.  The United States has significantly reduced smoking among both youth and adults, but 19.3 percent of adults and 19.5 percent of high school students still smoke.

Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., killing more than 400,000 people and costing $96 billion in health care bills each year. 

More information, including the full report and state-specific information, can be obtained at www.tobaccofreekids.org/reports/settlements.

SOURCE Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids