Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Tobacco usage in Tennessee
Tennessee ranks 45th nationwide in funding programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a new report by a coalition of public health organizations. Tennessee is spending $1.1 million this year on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, just 1.5 percent of the $75.6 million recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report challenges states to do more to fight tobacco use – the nation's No. 1 cause of preventable death – and help make the next generation tobacco-free. In Tennessee, 11.5 percent of high school students still smoke, and 3,400 kids become regular smokers each year. Tobacco use claims 11,400 Tennessee lives and costs the state over $2.6 billion in health care bills annually. Other key findings in the report include: Tennessee will collect $418.3 million in revenue this year from the 1998 state tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend only less than 1 percent of the money on tobacco prevention programs. Tobacco companies spend more than $275 million each year to market their products in Tennessee – more than 250 times what the state spends on tobacco prevention. Nationwide, tobacco companies spend $9.1 billion a year on marketing – more than $1 million every hour.


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