Rhode Island Cigarette Tax Increase Delivers Victory for Kids and Taxpayers; $1 Increase Gives State Highest Cigarette Tax in ...(rnor Carcieri allowed the budget to beco...),Health

Date:4/8/2009

rnor Carcieri allowed the budget to become law without his signature. By supporting a higher cigarette tax, Rhode Island's leaders have taken action that will improve the health of Rhode Islanders for generations to come and continue the state's leadership in the fight against tobacco use, the No. 1 cause of preventable death in the United States. The tobacco tax increases take effect on Friday (April 10).

Rhode Island has taken significant steps to win the fight against tobacco use by implementing higher tobacco taxes and a comprehensive smoke-free workplace law. The next step for Rhode Island is to increase funding for its tobacco prevention and cessation programs to levels recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention so it can have the greatest impact in preventing and reducing tobacco use.

Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death and disease in Rhode Island, claiming 1,600 lives each year and costing the state $506 million annually in health care bills, including $179 million in Medicaid payments alone. Government expenditures related to tobacco amount to a hidden tax of $728 each year on every Rhode Island household. While Rhode Island has made significant progress in reducing youth smoking, 15.1 percent of Rhode Island high school students smoke, and 1,400 more kids become regular smokers every year.

With Rhode Island's tax increase, the average state cigarette tax is now $1.23 per pack. Rhode Island is the first state with a cigarette tax of $3 or more. Twelve states and the District of Columbia have cigarette tax rates of $2 per pack or more, and 26 states and DC have cigarette tax rates of $1 per pack or more.

'/>"/>

SOURCE Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids Copyright©2009 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

1 GOOD

Page: 1 2
Related medicine news :

1. Free Prescription Drug Card Launched in Rhode Island
2. Medicaid Reform Efforts Underway in Louisiana and Rhode Island
3. Rhode Island Hospital first in US to treat kidney tumor with new device using electrical pulses
4. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island and Care New England Reach Multiyear Agreement
5. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island and Care New England Reach Agreement to Extend Network Participation
6. Rhode Island Hospital study finds local retail meat safe from antibiotic-resistant organisms
7. New research from Rhode Island Hospital may help predict outcomes for stomach cancer patients
8. InterComponentWare Inc. and Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island Celebrate Milestone
9. New Rhode Island Hospital study shows inadequate diagnostic criteria for eating disorders
10. Dominion Diagnostics Supports Rhode Islands Toys for Tots Initiative at Its 2007 Holiday Celebration
11. Rhode Island Hospital to study driving ability of cognitively impaired elders