Why should you make your call?
The facts:

• Tobacco use continues to take a toll on the lives of too many Ohioans. In fact, tobacco use is the number one preventable cause of death and disease, and lung cancer is the number one cancer killer.
• More than one-fifth of Ohio adults smoke. About the same percentage of kids smoke, and 17 percent use other tobacco products.
• Ohio spends $1.4 billion in Medicaid costs to treat sick smokers.
• Unfortunately, time is running out! The proposed state budget includes NO funding for prevention and cessation programs. In 2012, Ohio could become the only state that would not have a Quit line to help smokers quit.

Sample Script/Talking Points
Feel free to use the following talking points when making your call to your Senator:
I'm calling to urge Senator _____ to support comprehensive tobacco prevention funding. For every pack of cigarettes sold in Ohio, we pay $9.19 in related healthcare costs.* We can significantly reduce these costs - and more importantly, save lives - by reducing the number of tobacco-users in our state through comprehensive, evidence-based tobacco prevention programs and tobacco cessation programs. Even with the current budget deficit, we can't give up on health! By correcting the inequality in the Other Tobacco Products tax, we can use this additional revenue to fund comprehensive, evidence-based tobacco prevention funding. I ask Senator ______ to make this common-sense approach part of the budget.

*According to a scientific analysis by the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids

Feel free to use the following talking points when making your call to Governor Kasich:

I'm calling to urge Governor Kasich to support comprehensive tobacco prevention funding. For every pack of cigarettes sold in Ohio, we pay $9.19 in related healthcare costs.* We can significantly reduce these costs--and more importantly, save lives-- by reducing the number of tobacco-users in our state through comprehensive, evidence-based tobacco prevention programs and tobacco cessation programs. Even with the current budget deficit, we can't give up on health! By correcting the inequality in the Other Tobacco Products tax, we can use this revenue to fund comprehensive, evidence-based tobacco prevention funding.  I ask Governor Kasich to do it now as part of the budget and join the 70.7% of Ohioans who agree with this solution.**

*According to Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids

**From Jan. 2011 polling of registered Ohio voters

How do I contact my Senator? Just click here!
How do I contact Governor Kasich? (614) 466-3555

Additional talking points:

• Ohio once had a model tobacco prevention and cessation program. The successful program helped to reduce smoking rates among adults and kids in Ohio.
• Ohio’s once model program will be snuffed out if Governor Kasich has his way. His proposed budget does not fund prevention programs, enforcement of the Smoke Free Workplace Act, or Ohio’s successful Quit line.
• Ohio collects more than $800 million in cigarette taxes each year. Unfortunately, NONE of that money is invested in tobacco prevention and cessation or enforcement of the Smoke Free Ohio law. In fact, Governor Kasich’s proposed budget eliminates tobacco prevention and cessation programs all together.
• Funding tobacco cessation saves both lives and money. I hope our lawmakers take prevention seriously and fund prevention and cessation programs.
• Other tobacco products, like cigars and smokeless tobacco, are not taxed at the same rate as cigarettes, making them far too attractive and affordable for our kids. By correcting this inequality in the Other Tobacco Products tax, we can generate much needed revenue to fund comprehensive, evidence based tobacco prevention funding to keep today's kids from becoming tomorrow's addicted tobacco users. This simple move would provide needed revenue for the state AND funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

Call your Senator and Gov. Kasich today! Then let us know that you did!

Over the past few weeks, we've been working to educate legislators on the importance of saving Ohio's tobacco prevention and cessation efforts. Each of these four alerts focus on a different component of this lifesaving effort - have you sent each message to your legislators?

Please take a moment to click each of the following four links and make sure that your legislators know the facts from the myths!

Myth Debunked: Popular Opinion of Tobacco Taxes
Not only do Ohioans' support increased tobacco taxes, they prefer it over other options! Share the polling data with your legislators today so they can see that this is a win-win for Ohio!

Myth Debunked: Job Loss from Tobacco Increases
In this economy, we must be vigilant about job loss and legislators worry that increased tobacco taxes will lead to convenience store job loss. However, we know this is not true! Share the report with your legislators!

Myth Debunked: Cross-Border Tobacco Sales
A common misconception is that increased taxes will send Ohio's smokers across borders to purchase tobacco - but research shows this is not the case. Share this research with legislators today!

Myth Debunked: Costs of Tobacco Use
It costs every Ohioan $9.19 for every pack of cigarettes sold in the state. But there is a simple solution - a health impact fee. Educate your legislators on the costs of tobacco and the solution today!

Thank you for helping save tobacco prevention and cessation in Ohio!

Did you know that it costs every Ohioan $9.19 for every pack of cigarettes sold in the state? Each Ohio household's annual federal and state tax burden to cover tobacco-related costs is $618! In any economy, that is a lot of money.

A health impact fee is the solution - tell your legislators today!

In our ongoing campaign to debunk tobacco myths, it's important that legislators understand what tobacco use costs all of us. This week, we are talking about the solution as a Health Impact Fee.

Please send your message today!

June 30th--and the end of Ohio's Tobacco Prevention and Cessation program--is quickly approaching. We have only a short time to educate Ohio's legislators about the truth--and tobacco's cost to all of us!

Thank you for fighting for tobacco prevention in Ohio!

Tick, tick, tick…

The clock is ticking for tobacco prevention in Ohio! Just two years ago, we had a nationally recognized prevention program and were experiencing use rates decrease. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said today!

As the tobacco industry spends more money using Ohio as a test market and smoking use is increasing, Ohio is set to end tobacco prevention funding on June 30, 2010.  Just a few short months away!

To help turn this problem around, the American Heart Association is partnering with other public health groups to host an Advocacy Day. This could be our last chance to save tobacco prevention for Ohio!

Please mark your calendars for March 17th and make plans to join us! To register, or to simply learn more about Advocacy Day, click here. 

We hope to see you there!

Orbs, Sticks and Strips, Oh My! The tobacco industry is using Ohio as a test market AGAIN for their new products. First, it was SNUS (little packets of tobacco) in 2008. Then this past spring, they launched Orbs (tobacco mints.) And just weeks ago Columbus saw Sticks and Strips. These flavored products are not only kid friendly, but cheap compared to the price of cigarettes in Ohio, since they aren't taxed at the same rate.  But, there is a solution!

Ohio should equalize the tax on Other Tobacco Products, which includes SNUS, Orbs, Sticks and Strips, and use the revenue for tobacco prevention and cessation.

Send your message to your elected leaders! Let's do everything we can to help current tobacco users quit and prevent Ohio's kids from starting!

You may have heard that Pennsylvania legislators and the Governor have agreed to a budget proposal, which is accurate, but the truth is that staff are still working behind the scenes to reach agreements so that legislative leaders can take a proposal to the PA House and Senate. Not all rank-and-file members are happy with the budget proposal and they are still trying to influence their leadership on the final “tweaks” that need to be made.

What still remains in this proposed budget are slashes to tobacco prevention and cessation programs by 50%, and still no excise tax on harmful smokeless tobacco, cigars and other tobacco products. As the only state in the nation that doesn't tax these "other tobacco products," this is a nod to the tobacco lobbyists in Harrisburg and is simply outrageous!

Even if you've sent a message before, please take action NOW, before it's too late! Our state lawmakers need to understand that a majority of the public supports tobacco taxes, especially when effective tobacco prevention and cessation programs are on the chopping block! Tobacco company lobbyists are working overtime against us and our state lawmakers need to hear from you TODAY! Just click here!


To read more about this issue, there is an opinion piece on the OTP here at the Philly Daily News and also a news story here from The Patriot-News

Ohio's tobacco prevention and cessation funding has experienced turbulence in recent years. From securitization (which took away borrowed and future payments) to dismantling of the foundation to having the endowment re-allocated and tied up in a court case, Ohio's nationally recognized initiative to reduce tobacco use and help current users quit is no longer at the same capacity.

Following the court case, the state gave the Ohio Department of Health a tiny amount of money to perform the same job. At the same time, the tobacco industry used Ohio as a test market for new products! In just the last year, we are already seeing the negative impacts of this approach (See post from August 17, 2009). As posted on August 12, there have been several developments. First, a ruling was rendered in the original court case on August 11, 2009. To read recaps of this decision, check out the two links below:
Toledo Blade Editorial
Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids press release

While Judge Fais' ruling supports the value of tobacco prevention and cessation efforts, the state quickly appealed the case. The funds will continue to be held by the court.

So, what does this mean?

Once the current tobacco prevention dollars run out on June 30, 2010, there will be no tobacco prevention effort at ODH without some other action. Another funding source will be needed.
To learn more about plans to provide for tobacco prevention funding, visit http://investinginyouth.org/ Activities and alerts are being planned to educate legislators on the value of quality, evidence based tobacco prevention. Stay tuned to learn more!

Ohio is one of only 7 states to not pass a budget by June 30th, and while the state still faces economic problems, the need for tobacco prevention and cessation funding still continues. Thanks to the efforts of our fantastic advocates, we have continued to gain support for an increase in the tax on “other tobacco products.”

Tobacco companies have long been targeting our youth with products like strawberry and grape flavored cigars--even packaged to resemble candy. Although we’ve been working toward an increase in the tax on these products to price them out of reach of our kids, the tobacco industry is attempting to ‘sweet talk’ our legislators into using a weight-based system since their newer products, like orbs and SNUS, weigh practically nothing. This would not only generate less state revenue, but will also make these products more affordable for our kids.

While this fight continues through the budget process, the strong response from advocates IS making a difference. If you haven’t had a chance to send your message, please do so today!