Smokefree Advocacy 

Cuts to Tobacco Prevention Funding - Resources and Ideas for Educating Key Audiences

 

From The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids: This is an unprecedented and challenging time. Thank you for your incredibly important work that has resulted in enormous, monumental strides in driving down tobacco use and helped save millions of lives. You and your teams serve as a tremendous foe to a billion-dollar industry that will never stop its efforts to expand its customer base.

 

Given the massive job cuts at HHS and the dismantling of many CDC programs, including the Office on Smoking and Health, we wanted to be in touch with some resources that can be used to help educate key audiences, including Health Department leadership, community partners and other key stakeholders about your tobacco control program, its impact and the implications of losing OSH funding.  This is also an important time to document the importance of tobacco prevention and cessation work and how CDC funds have been used effectively at the state and local level.

 

Provided Resources:

Factsheet: Eliminating CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health Will Undercut State Tobacco Control Programs and Increase Tobacco-Caused Death and Disease
Talking Points that can be used to educate about your program(s) and the potential impact of OSH funding cuts
Documenting the Impact of Cuts to Tobacco Prevention Funding – key questions/information to collect – these are some tips/ideas for the type of information that can help tell your story in a compelling way.  

 

We are also interested in seeing this information as we seek to educate various audiences.  Please consider filling out this online survey. 
 

As we work to educate federal partners and stakeholders about the impact of OSH’s work and the implications of these cuts, there is much you can be doing on the state level. Below are some key action items to consider:

• Educate your State Health Officers and other Health Department leadership on the importance of the tobacco prevention program’s work and its impact. Describe the role of OSH funding and the implications of OSH funding cuts – what are the specific impacts in terms of staffing, services, programming

• Outreach to state coalition partners – make sure they know about your program work, its accomplishments and the implications of OSH funding cuts. Partners can share data and tell the story in compelling ways that reach key audiences

• Educate your contractors and other state partners about the cuts and their implications. Encourage them to educate their networks

• Work with your communications team to educate the public about your program and the implications of funding cuts – share real world impact of losses to programs and services.   

• Recruit community members who have been impacted by your program – for example, successful quitters can serve as spokespersons who can share their stories with the media, community stakeholders and others.

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National Advocacy

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Smokefree SC stands with Public Health Organizations across the country in urging the FDA to act swiftly in finalizing Docket Number FDA-2021-N-1349 Tobacco Product Standard for Menthol in Cigarettes and Docket Number FDA-2021-N-1309 Tobacco Product Standard for Characterizing Flavors in Cigars. We believe both of these proposals will translate into substantial reductions in preventable tobacco-related deaths and disease. 

 

Read our Comment Letter to the FDA for Docket Number FDA-2021-N-1349 Tobacco Product Standard for Menthol in Cigarettes here.

 

Read our Comment Letter to the FDA for Docket Number FDA-2021-N-1309 Tobacco Product Standard for Characterizing Flavors in Cigars here.

 

 

Statewide Advocacy

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Secondhand smoke can be highly toxic to adults, children, and babies who are exposed, yet less than half of South Carolina is protected by smokefree and tobacco-free policies. We encourage individuals and groups to stay informed about bills related to tobacco products and to help educate South Carolina lawmakers about the most effective policies to protect South Carolinians from the harms of commercial tobacco products.

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