On Friday, leaders in the General Assembly reached consensus on a PA budget proposal for the 2009-2010 Fiscal Year. The American Heart Association recognizes the time and effort that was required to reach a bipartisan agreement on a budget proposal for Pennsylvania. However, there are two significant flaws in this proposal that will impact the health of children and adults.

The proposal will increase cigarette excise taxes by 25-cents, which analysts estimate could generate an additional $94 million, but the budget agreement still proposes to slash $16.1 million from the tobacco master settlement agreement, which funds statewide tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

Science proves that quitting smoking can greatly reduce the occurrence of coronary heart disease and other forms of cardiovascular disease. The tobacco settlement funds were designed to finance prevention and cessation programs for Pennsylvanians. However, under this budget proposal, the settlement funds would be used to fill budget gaps.

The inception of these programs in Pennsylvania has decreased cigarette use among youth, illegal sales to minors and has led to a significant drop in smoking prevalence among adults.

“Slashing these life-saving programs to close a budget gap will be detrimental to Pennsylvanians that rely on these programs to lead healthier lives," said Anne Cobuzzi, Board Chairwoman-elect for the American Heart Association, Great Rivers Affiliate. “These programs are vital to help prevent thousands more people from developing heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases as a result of tobacco use.”

The second flaw fails to close a loophole on other tobacco products, or OTPs, and allows a revenue loss by omitting a tax on smokeless tobacco products and cigars. Pennsylvania will continue to be the only state in the nation that does not tax smokeless tobacco products, and is one of only three states that does not tax cigars.

The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids estimates that placing a tax on OTPs based on the product’s wholesale cost could generate as much as $100 million in much-needed new revenue for Pennsylvania. This new revenue could not only preserve the $16.1 million for tobacco prevention and cessation programs, but it could also be used to save other health-related programs that are in jeopardy of being cut in this budget proposal.

“We are surprised that Pennsylvania legislators support significantly reducing effective tobacco prevention programs particularly now as our nation is addressing the burden of healthcare costs and prevention should be a top priority”.” said Cobuzzi. “Taxing OTPs could be a win-win for legislators and the citizens of Pennsylvania by raising new revenues to plug budget gaps and protecting our children from using these products.”