TMCnet News
28% Of State's Adults Smoke [State Journal, The (Charleston)](State Journal, The (Charleston) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Twenty-eight percent of the adult population in West Virginia smokes, compared to 18 percent of adults nationwide. Although the West Virginia figure hasn't changed much in recent years, the director of the state's tobacco prevention efforts believes West Virginia is on the cusp of a decline. "We're at a point I think our smoking rate will start ticking down because of the successes we're having in other areas," said Bruce Adkins, director of the state Division of Tobacco Prevention. West Virginia has three primary anti-tobacco initiatives: A youth tobacco prevention program, a tobacco-cessation program and an indoor clean air program. The youth program has had between 4,000 and 5,000 active participants for the past two years and has scored a notable success: According to the 2013 Youth Tobacco Survey, 46.1 percent of high school students have never used any form of tobacco - up from 20.6 percent in 2000. Young Recruits Adkins said the change is significant because the tobacco industry must recruit about 3,800 new West Virginia smokers annually to replace the estimated 3,800 West Virginians who die each year from smoking-related illnesses. The increase in high school students who haven't tried tobacco "is an impressive figure that shows what we're doing is working," Adkins said. "That means we still have work to do, of course," he said. "If we could get to the day where 75 percent of them had never tried tobacco, there's no question our adult tobacco use rate and illnesses and death and disease from tobacco would also decrease. "Even though we're successfully getting youth to not use tobacco and to even quit, the tobacco industry is beating us in recruiting 18- to 24-year-olds. We have a large number of that population that is using; we know many of them are getting recruited to become a tobacco user after they leave high school. One of the things we know from research by organizations like the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids is a lot of the industry's social and electronic marketing is targeted at that age group. They are lovingly called 'replacement smokers' (by the industry)." Calling it Quits Adkins also pointed to success in the cessation program's Quitline - a toll free telephone program that offers free or low-cost coaching and assistance to smokers who want to quit. Quitline has been averaging 7,500 to 9,500 enrollees over the past five or six years. "Thirty-seven percent of those who enroll in Quitline services are documented to be quit at six- and 12-month intervals," he said. "So one out of three are quit a year out. If they are quit a year out they'll tend to stay quit." In addition, the quit rate has been going up, he said. County Clean Air The state's indoor clean air program is locally driven and regulations are not uniform. More than a decade ago the West Virginia Legislature gave local health departments the power to pass health regulations at the local level. Adkins said regional coordinators were deployed across the state about 12 years ago to help educate and encourage local health departments to pass smoking bans. Today "we have a smoking ban at every county health department," Adkins said. "All 49 of them have some semblance of a smoking ban but we have different ones. "We now have 29 counties covered by a comprehensive smoking ban which pretty much incorporates all public and all work places, like the ban in Kanawha County where there is no exception, including Mardi Gras Casino." Adkins said Kanawha County's policy is a good one in many ways. "It helps to have a uniform policy; it protects people from second-hand smoke," he said. "And we know it keeps kids from ever starting because it changes the cultural norm and social acceptance of tobacco use. The other thing is it helps people who smoke quit. "That regional network, combined with passage of local clean indoor air regulations at the county health level, has been a tremendous success." However, Adkins said more local regulations need passed. "We only have about 55 to 60 percent of the state's population and geography covered under what I would call a real strong smoking ban," he said. Which means 40 to 45 percent of the population is not covered. "There may come a time when we've reached that tipping point where maybe we're not going to get any more health departments to decide. It might be - as some states have done that a state ban would be in order," he said. "But at the state level there's always the potential a state ban could be made weaker and pre-empt a good strong smoking ban such as the one we have here in Kanawha County. "If the state would pass a comprehensive smoking ban to include restaurants and bars but exempt gaming facilities, it would be a step back for Kanawha County." Failing Grade The American Lung Association says the state's efforts are failing. The organization's "2014 State of Tobacco Control" report card gives West Virginia an "F" in all four categories it rates: tobacco prevention, smoke-free air, cigarette tax and cessation coverage. West Virginia invests about $6.2 million a year in tobacco control programs. The American Lung Association, which advocates for healthy lungs and healthy air, points out that the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the state spend a minimum of $19.2 million. In addition, the association notes that West Virginia has no state smoking ban, has some barriers to participation in cessation programs and has a 55-cents-per-pack tax on cigarettes, which is one of the lowest tax rates in the United States. In the July-August issue of the Medical Journal published by the West Virginia Medical Association, Dr. Rahul Gupta, executive director of the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department, joined Nasandra Wright, acting director of the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department's Division of Environmental Health and Monika Sawhney, assistant professor at Marshall University's College of Health Professions, to point out that the state is not on track to reduce cigarette smoking among adults to 12 percent or less by the year 2020. "This is extremely disturbing since evidence-based, statewide tobacco control programs that are comprehensive, sustained and accountable have been shown to reduce smoking rates, as well as tobacco-related diseases and deaths across the nation," they wrote. "In West Virginia, as has been the successful case with local clean indoor air regulations, priority should focus on funding these local agencies thus strengthening them to implement comprehensive programs to control tobacco in communities across the state." The authors concluded, "As a state, we must begin to understand that these individual components are most effective when they work together at community levels to produce the synergistic effects of a comprehensive statewide tobacco control program. Therefore we strongly recommend our state Legislature and influencers of policy to consider tobacco control funding mechanisms that promote such strategies at the local community level." Adkins agreed. "I believe, for the most part, they are correct," he said. "I believe we have the infrastructure in place based upon what the Centers for Disease Control recommends. "I believe we have to spend a little bit more money on a couple of things - we need to have a stronger education program. We could obviously spend a little bit more funding on addressing clean indoor air and some of the policy changes for workplaces at the local level. And if we could reach more youth, get more youth involved ... "The key issues are: Our tobacco prices are very low; we need more comprehensive indoor air regulations passed at the local level and/or we need a comprehensive, without pre-emption, clean air regulation passed at the state level. And we need to redouble our effort for our kids. They didn't say that in the article, but I think that's where they were going what they meant by the policies and interventions that need to take place at the local and state levels." Adkins also stressed that West Virginia has "significant cultural acceptance of tobacco products" and he cited a Federal Trade Commission study that estimates the tobacco industry spends $120 million a year on advertising and marketing in West Virginia. That means the industry is outspending anti-tobacco efforts almost 20-to-1, he said. Asked if the Division of Tobacco Prevention advocates a hike in the state's tobacco taxes, he said, "It is up to the Legislature and state administration whether they consider a tax increase. What we do know and what is best practices is a price increase is the No. 1 way to help people quit, keep kids from starting, and will help to lower the severe cost of tobacco use to the state and West Virginia businesses. The tobacco industry knows this as well, which is why they lobby against tobacco taxes and indoor air regulations." (c) 2014 State Journal Corporation |