Smoke-Free Workplace Laws, Cigarette Taxes on the Rise

But 34 states aren't spending enough on smoking-cessation programs, report says.

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
Tuesday, January 9, 2007; 12:00 AM

Copyright © 2007 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.

TUESDAY, Jan. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Anti-tobacco forces are claiming some victories, with more states banning smoking in public places. But there's still too little state funding for smoking prevention and cessation programs.

That's the conclusion of the American Lung Association's fifth annual State of Tobacco Control Report Card, released Tuesday.

"The science is behind all the policy items that we give grades on," said Thomas A. Carr, manager of national policy at the American Lung Association. "But what is lacking is the political will to enact them in all the states and federal government."

"We know that strong smoke-free air laws, high cigarette taxes and tobacco-prevention programs work, but not all states are doing enough," Carr added. "Perhaps they don't realize what it's costing them. The health care costs are staggering. The costs of health care and lost productivity from tobacco are estimated at $167 billion nationwide each year."

Stanton A. Glantz, director of the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at the University of California, San Francisco, thinks the lack of progress in many states is due to pressure from tobacco companies.

"The tobacco companies are very politically active," Glantz said. "They spend a lot of money on campaign contributions and lobbyists, and they are very good at protecting their interests. Every inch of public health progress is a dollar out of the tobacco company's pockets."

David Sutton, a spokesman for Philip Morris U.S.A., said the cigarette maker "is opposed to excessive tax increases on cigarettes. They unfairly burden adult consumers. States can use their Master Settlement proceeds to fund smoking cessation and tobacco use prevention programs.

"We agree that there are places where smoking should not be allowed at all," he added. "We don't oppose reasonable public place smoking restrictions."

The new report highlights the growth in the number of states with smoke-free workplace laws and average cigarette taxes of at least $1 per pack, which indicates some progress was made in 2006 to protect Americans from the dangers of smoking, according to the report.