Dec. 9--Kentucky ranks 40th in the nation in funding programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a report that will be released today by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

The CTFK report, "A Broken Promise to Our Children: The 1998 State Tobacco Settlement 11 Years Later," calls for Kentucky leaders to increase funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs and for Kentucky legislators to fund a 2007 law to help Medicaid recipients quit smoking.

CTFK is a coalition of health advocates that includes the American Cancer Society, Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The group is also calling on Kentucky leaders to further raise the state cigarette tax.

Kentucky currently spends $3.9 million a year on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, which is 6.9 percent of the $57.2 million recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Last year, Kentucky ranked 41st, spending $3.7 million on tobacco prevention. State funding for tobacco prevention has stayed level at $2.8 million, but the state is receiving a slightly larger federal grant of $1.14 million for tobacco prevention this year, according to Amy Barkley, director of Tobacco States and Mid-Atlantic Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids.

"Kentucky has not made tobacco prevention and cessation a priority, and it shows," said Barkley. "We have one of the highest youth smoking rates in the country at 26 percent. One bit of good news is that we have moved from No. 1 to No. 3 in adult smoking, but our rate of 25.3 percent is nothing to brag about." The national rate is 20.6 percent.

In Kentucky, 26 percent of high school students smoke, according to the CDC, and 5,700 more kids become regular smokers every year. Each year, tobacco claims 7,800 lives and costs the state $1.5 billion in health care bills.

The CTFK report also shows that Kentucky this year will collect $383 million from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend just 1 percent of it on tobacco prevention programs. Meanwhile, tobacco companies will spend $417.5 million a year to market their products in Kentucky -- 106 times what the state spends on tobacco prevention.

"We know exactly what we need to do to keep kids tobacco-free and help smokers who want to quit," Barkley added. "The Department for Public Health is taking steps that are proven to work, but they are only able to do that on a small scale, with a budget that's a fraction of what the CDC recommends. When the tobacco industry spends 106 times more than that promoting their products in Kentucky, how can they be expected to make significant progress?"

To make real progress, the state needs to raise the cigarette tax, make more local communities smoke-free, and adequately fund a comprehensive, statewide tobacco prevention and cessation program, according to Barkley.

One small but important step the General Assembly can take in this coming session is to provide a mere $1.5 million to fund smoking cessation benefits for people on Medicaid, Barkley said. A law in 2007 was passed to help smokers on Medicaid by providing medications and counseling but was never funded.

"This small investment will reduce smoking among low-income Kentuckians, save lives and save the taxpayers money by reducing tobacco-related health care costs," Barkley said.

"Kentucky is one of the most disappointing states when it comes to funding programs to protect kids from tobacco and is spending just a fraction of what the CDC recommends," said Matthew L. Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "Even in these difficult budget times, tobacco prevention is a smart investment that reduces smoking, saves lives and saves money by reducing tobacco-related health care costs."

In addition to its lack of funding for tobacco prevention, Kentucky's cigarette tax is only 60 cents per pack, which is the 11th lowest in the nation and well below the national average of $1.34 per pack, the CTFK claims.

On a national level, 11 years after the 1998 state tobacco settlement, the new report finds that the states this year are collecting record amounts of revenue from the tobacco industry but are spending less of it on tobacco prevention. Key national findings of the report include:

--States this year will collect $25.1 billion from the tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend just 2.3 percent of it -- $567.5 million -- on tobacco prevention programs. It would take less than 15 percent of their tobacco revenue to fund tobacco prevention programs in every state at CDC-recommended levels.

--The report warns that the nation's progress in reducing smoking is at risk unless states increase funding for programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit. The United States has significantly reduced smoking among both youth and adults, but the CDC's most recent survey showed that smoking declines among adults have stalled. Currently, 20 percent of high school students and 20.6 percent of adults smoke.

--Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., killing more than 400,000 people and costing $96 billion in health care bills each year. Every day, another 1,000 kids become regular smokers -- one-third of them will die prematurely as a result.

-- More information, including the full report and state-specific information, can be viewed at www.tobaccofreekids.org/reports/settlements.

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