Clear the Air

Tags: FDA, Federal policies, tobacco

The following tobacco-related bills were introduced today, Friday, February 20th, in the West Virginia Legislature:

SB312 - Requiring smoke-free medical facilities

HB2681 - Eliminating the food tax, increase the tax on nonintoxicating beer per barrel from $5.50 to $6.35, increase the tax on cigarettes to $1.35, increase the tax on noncigarette tobacco products from seven percent to fourteen percent, and to dedicate the first $5 million of revenue to the Department of Agriculture’s crop transition program.

Bills are listed here for informational purposes only and no endorsement is to be implied. Clear the Air will review bills more in depth as they begin to move. To track these bills yourself visit the West Virginia Legislative website Bill Status page.

Tags: 2009 Session, bills introduced, tobacco, West Virginia Legislature

The following tobacco-related bills were introduced today, Friday, February 13th, in the West Virginia Legislature:

HB 2360 Insuring that tobacco products are not sold in any packaging other than the original.

Bills are listed here for informational purposes only and no endorsement is to be implied. Clear the Air will review bills more in depth as they begin to move. To track these bills yourself visit the West Virginia Legislative website Bill Status page.

Tags: 2009 Session, bills introduced, tobacco, West Virginia Legislature

The following tobacco-related bills were introduced today, Wednesday, February 11th, in the West Virginia Legislature:

SB 32 Granting municipal courts jurisdiction over juveniles violating tobacco use laws.

SB 62 Increasing penalties for underage use or possession of tobacco.

SB 88 Creating Transition Program for Tobacco Farmers.

SB 115 Prohibiting smoking in motor vehicle when child under 14 is present.

Bills are listed here for informational purposes only and no endorsement is to be implied. Clear the Air will review bills more in depth as they begin to move. To track these bills yourself visit the West Virginia Legislative website Bill Status page.

Tags: 2009 Session, bills introduced, tobacco, West Virginia Legislature

On Tuesday, an interim committee of the West Virginia Legislature will be considering legislation recommending an increase West Virginia’s tobacco excise tax on cigarettes from the current level of 55 cents per pack to the national average of $1.20 per pack.  This measure will likely be quite contentious as the legislative session proceeds with the tobacco industry lobbying hard, as they always do, to defeat any proposal which might dampen their ability to peddle a dangerous, toxic and addictive product.

Increasing West Virginia’s excise tax this year is vital to the health of our state and its citizens in two ways.

First,  raising the cost of tobacco products is a proven strategy to reduce the use in virtually every age group and demographic. Studies, and experience in state after state, show that higher cigarette taxes are one of the most effective ways to reduce smoking among both youth and adults. Every 10 percent increase in the price of cigarettes will reduce youth smoking by about seven percent and overall cigarette consumption by about four percent.

Secondly, increasing the excise tax on tobacco products will generate the increased revenues needed for West Virginia to provide health coverage to more of our people and move forward implementing a host of health reforms outlined in the Roadmap to Health Report. This report, which has been a year in the making and has involved hundreds of citizens and stakeholders throughout the state, says “West Virginia spends 13 percent more per person on health care than the national average. Moreover, the growth in spending is slightly higher in West Virginia compared to the national average. Over 14 percent — some 254,000 — West Virginians were uninsured during 2007.”

Only by making health care more available, affordable and geared towards preventing disease before it occurs can these statistics be changed. Many of the proposals which have been developed during through the Roadmap to Health Project are critical to addressing these problems but can not occur without a means of funding. An increase in the tobacco excise tax will provide those needed funds. Every state that has significantly increased its cigarette tax has enjoyed substantial increases in revenue, even while reducing smoking. These funds have helped other states fund essential services like health care and tobacco prevention programs. Contrary to tobacco industry arguments, cigarette tax increases are a reliable source of revenue for states.

West Virginia’s tax on cigarettes currently ranks 40th in the nation. No surprise we have the second highest death rate from tobacco related illnesses.

Now is the time for our citizens and our elected officials to stand up to the special interests of the tobacco industry. Now is the time to put the health of our people first. Now is the time to provide the access to care and preventive services West Virginia’s need to grow and prosper.

Now is the time for a tobacco tax increase in West Virginia.

Tags: health care, Roadmap to Health, tax, tobacco, West Virginia, West Virginia Legislature

In a report released in January the U.S. Centers for Disease and Prevention found West Virginia’s death rate from smoking was second in the nation following Kentucky.

In West Virginia, the rate was 344 deaths per 100,000. Kentucky lead the nation at 371 deaths per 100,000. The national average was pegged at 263 per 100,000.

The lowest death rates were in Utah and Hawaii.

The CDC calculated these rates using death certificate death certificate data from the years 2000 through 2004, focusing on lung cancer, cardiovascular disease and 17 other disease caused by cigarette smoking.

Tags: CDC, data, tobacco, West Virginia