New Tobacco Research Finds Minnesota's Latino Population Smoking Significantly Less than General ...(nue conversations about tobacco useamong...),Health

"This data, combined with information gleaned from our 2006 qualitative report, paints a complete picture of tobacco use within the Latino community and sheds light on tobacco-related health disparities," said Marc Manley, M.D., vice president and medical director, Blue Cross. "Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death and disease in our state and costs Minnesotans nearly $2 billion annually. It's extremely important to understand the barriers to quitting and use culturally appropriate solutions. We look forward to working with the Latino community to lower rates even further."

"Now we know where we're doing well and where we can improve, and these reports will help guide our strategies going forward," said Bethke Gomez. "I'm confident this information will result in tailored approaches to reduce tobacco use and improve the health of thousands of Latino community members."

These reports grew out of a collaborative project called Diverse Racial and Ethnic Groups and Nations (DREGAN). In this participatory research and action project, CLUES represents Minnesota's Latino communities and works with Blue Cross and ClearWay Minnesota(SM) to reduce tobacco's harms.

Copies of the both the new quantitative report as well as the 2006 qualitative report can be downloaded from any of the sponsor websites at http://www.clues.org, http://www.bluecrossmn.com/preventionminnesota or http://www.clearwaymn.org.

NOTE ABOUT THE SURVEY: The quantitative survey was conducted from January 2006-March 2007 using a combination of face-to-face and tele
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