Health News
Though it received $389 million in tobacco-settlement funds in fiscal year 2012, and ranks first or second in tobacco use, Kentucky spent just $2.2 million of that on prevention of tobacco use. The figures rank Kentucky 36th in the nation for helping its residents stop smoking or using smokeless tobacco.
- Cdc Says State Spends Less Than 8% Of What It Should On Preventing Use Of Tobacco; Companies Spend 13 Times As Much
Kentucky spends only 7.6 percent of what it should spend on preventing the use of tobacco, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says in its latest annual report on the subject. The state spent $4.33 million on tobacco-control programs...
- Kentucky 's Spending Of Tobacco Settlement On Tobacco-prevention Programs Fall Far Short Of What Cdc Recommends
Kentucky ranks 39th in the country in funding programs that prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a national report from a coalition of public-health organizations. Kentucky ranks sixth in high-school smoking in the 2013 Centers...
- Kentucky Spends Less Than A Penny Of Its Tobacco-settlement Money On Prevention Programs; Few States Do Very Much
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News A new report says that 15 years after the 1998 state tobacco settlement, Kentucky ranks 38th in the nation in funding tobacco prevention and cessation programs, only 3.7 percent of the amount recommended by the federal Centers...
- Lack Of Statewide Smoking Ban Represents One Part Of Kentucky's Struggle To Deal With Tobacco Use And The Health Issues It Creates
By Molly BurchettKentucky Health News As the bill for a statewide smoking ban lies on its deathbed in the General Assembly, new federal data show Kentucky still has the highest percentage of smokers (29 percent) of any state, leads the nation in the share...
- Spend $1 On Smoking Cessation, Save $3 In Health Costs, Massachusetts Study Finds
Every $1 spent on smoking cessation in Massachusetts, saved $3 in health costs, a study of low-income Bay State residents found. That could bode well for the impact of a new smoking-cessation benefit in Kentucky's Medicaid program. Massachusetts...
Health News
Kentucky ranks 36th for tobacco prevention spending; many states have made cuts
Though it received $389 million in tobacco-settlement funds in fiscal year 2012, and ranks first or second in tobacco use, Kentucky spent just $2.2 million of that on prevention of tobacco use. The figures rank Kentucky 36th in the nation for helping its residents stop smoking or using smokeless tobacco. The findings come from a report called "A Broken Promise to Our Children: The 1998 State Tobacco Settlement 13 Years Later," which was released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society and other non-profit groups. The "promise" in the settlement among cigarette makers and state attorneys general was not specific, but strongly implied.
The report found that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend Kentucky spend $57.2 million each year to establish a comprehensive tobacco prevention program. But while Kentucky does not come close to that figure, most states don't either and have cut tobacco prevention spending even more in 2012 in the face of budget deficits, The Associated Press reports.
"There are no easy cuts anymore. There's the old expression, tried and true, it's not fat anymore, we're talking about bone," said Debra Miller, director of health policy for the Council of State Governments. "All revenue is looked at as revenue for the highest priority programs ... They aren't ignoring the whole idea of tobacco cessation and the public health issues, the budgets are just such a problem right now."
States have cut their funding 12 percent this year, putting it at its lowest level since 1999, AP reports.
Kentucky is one of 33 states that is spending less than a quarter of the amount recommended by the CDC. Only Alaska is meeting or exceeding the recommendation. Connecticut, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio and the District of Columbia did not put any funds into tobacco prevention in 2012. Kentucky cut its tobacco prevention spending by $400,000 from fiscal year 2011. In the past four years, states have cut funding by 36 percent.
About 46 million Americans smoke, while more than 3 percent of American adults use smokeless tobacco, according to the CDC. A recent poll found Kentucky has the highest smoking rate in the country, with 29 percent of people surveyed in a Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index poll answering "yes" to the question. To find county-specific smoking rates, click here. (Read more)
- Cdc Says State Spends Less Than 8% Of What It Should On Preventing Use Of Tobacco; Companies Spend 13 Times As Much
Kentucky spends only 7.6 percent of what it should spend on preventing the use of tobacco, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says in its latest annual report on the subject. The state spent $4.33 million on tobacco-control programs...
- Kentucky 's Spending Of Tobacco Settlement On Tobacco-prevention Programs Fall Far Short Of What Cdc Recommends
Kentucky ranks 39th in the country in funding programs that prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a national report from a coalition of public-health organizations. Kentucky ranks sixth in high-school smoking in the 2013 Centers...
- Kentucky Spends Less Than A Penny Of Its Tobacco-settlement Money On Prevention Programs; Few States Do Very Much
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News A new report says that 15 years after the 1998 state tobacco settlement, Kentucky ranks 38th in the nation in funding tobacco prevention and cessation programs, only 3.7 percent of the amount recommended by the federal Centers...
- Lack Of Statewide Smoking Ban Represents One Part Of Kentucky's Struggle To Deal With Tobacco Use And The Health Issues It Creates
By Molly BurchettKentucky Health News As the bill for a statewide smoking ban lies on its deathbed in the General Assembly, new federal data show Kentucky still has the highest percentage of smokers (29 percent) of any state, leads the nation in the share...
- Spend $1 On Smoking Cessation, Save $3 In Health Costs, Massachusetts Study Finds
Every $1 spent on smoking cessation in Massachusetts, saved $3 in health costs, a study of low-income Bay State residents found. That could bode well for the impact of a new smoking-cessation benefit in Kentucky's Medicaid program. Massachusetts...