Indianapolis, Indiana (January 2008)- Indiana scored a range of grades from C to F in the American Lung Association’s State of Tobacco Control 2007 report, which highlighted progress in just one category.

The annual American Lung Association report card grades each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico on four key tobacco control policies: smokefree air laws, cigarette tax, tobacco prevention spending and youth access laws.  In addition, the report grades federal tobacco control efforts, including: cigarette tax, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation of tobacco products, cessation policies and ratification of the international tobacco control treaty. 

Indiana received a D for cigarette taxes, an F for smokefree air, an F for tobacco prevention spending, and a C for youth access.  Youth Access was the only category that showed any progress from last year’s report climbing from an F.  The other grades saw no change.

“Clearly, we have scored some victories in protecting our citizens from tobacco addiction, but this is an ongoing and uphill battle, as tobacco prevention funding and smokefree air laws remain a challenge,” said Nancy Turner, President and CEO of the American Lung Association of Indiana. “We know what policies work to protect people’s health and save lives. Now it’s time for state and local leaders to summon the political will to put lives at the top of their priority list.”

Grading for tobacco prevention spending is based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs, which recommended that Indiana spend $34,780,000 per year on tobacco control and prevention spending.    The state’s actual spending was significantly less at $17,340,165.  CDC estimates that if all states funded their tobacco control programs at the recommended level of investment for 5 years, it would result in 5 million fewer smokers nationally.

Smokefree air grades reflect the need for everyone to be protected from the hazards of secondhand smoke.  Comprehensive smokefree air laws also de-normalize smoking, increase the number of people who quit and discourage kids from starting to smoke.  In 2006, the American Lung Association issued its Smokefree Air 2010 Challenge, which calls for all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico to be 100 percent smokefree no later than 2010.  “All workers and patrons should be protected from breathing toxic secondhand smoke,” said Turner.  “No worker should be exposed to secondhand smoke as a condition of their employment.”

Raising cigarette taxes prevents kids from starting to smoke and has motivated thousands of Americans to quit smoking, and Indiana’s D is based on its $0.995 tax. Studies show that for every 10 percent increase in the cost of a pack of cigarettes, there is a seven percent decline in youth consumption.  Currently, the average state cigarette tax nationwide is $1.11 per pack, an increase of about 11 cents from last year. 

The state’s C for youth access reflects enactment and enforcement of policies that restrict the sale and distribution of tobacco products to minors, despite the tobacco industry’s continued tactics to lure young smokers.  Nearly 10,000 people in Indiana die each year from diseases caused by cigarette smoking. Tobacco-related illness kills more than 438,000 Americans every year.