[HealthyTribes] American Lung Association report card

[Heiberg Holly]

Hello Coordinators,

Karen Girard, HPCDP Section Manager, was interviewed today by the Statesman Journal on the ALA report card.  We expect to see the article on Sunday.  Below are the main messages Karen touched upon.  We hope this is useful to you if you are contacted by reporters about the ALA report.


What's your take on the Lung Association's assessment of Oregon's tobacco policies?

*         We appreciate American Lung Association calling attention to the No 1. preventable cause of death and disease in Oregon, and the importance of tobacco prevention and cessation.

*         The American Lung Association supports Oregon's science-based Tobacco Prevention and Education Program.



o   A comprehensive approach emphasizing smoke-free places, price increases, education to encourage prevention and quit attempts, and laws that protect youth from tobacco products will collectively drive further meaningful reductions in tobacco use.

o   Oregon can drive progress by committing to the widespread use of telephone and on-line quit lines that offer individualized counseling and FDA approved medications to support the 80% of tobacco users who tell us that they want to quit.

o   Promoting progress today also requires recognizing that tobacco use has evolved from being an equal-opportunity killer to one threatening the most vulnerable members of our society. We must confront, and reverse, the tragically higher tobacco use rates that threaten Oregonians of who are struggling to get by, LBGTQ, racial and ethnic minorities, or are living with mental illness and substance use disorders.


*         Today, compared to 1996 when Oregon voters created the Tobacco Prevention and Education Program, Oregonians consume half as many cigarettes each year, and the proportion of adults smoking has declined by 22 percent, to slightly under 18 percent. The 11th grade smoking rate has declined to 11.5 percent and the 8th grade smoking rate to 6.6 percent.  This is thanks to the comprehensive approach of Oregon's program.


Did anything surprise you?

*         We were pleased to see that we received an "A" for smoke-free air.  In addition to the criteria the ALA used, we are having additional success with:

o   Oregon state parks will be smoke-free by the end of 2014.

o   Oregon has 17 tobacco-free fairgrounds and 36 jurisdictions have restricted tobacco use in local parks.

o    Most recently Umatilla County has joined Benton, Clatsop, Deschutes, Hood River, and Multnomah counties in passing a tobacco-free policy for all county properties.

o   43 out of 58 hospitals in Oregon have 100% smoke-free campuses.

o   All mental health and addictions residential treatment facilities that receive state funds are now 100% tobacco free.

o   Fifty percent of Oregon's community college students attend a school that is tobacco-free, and over half of our public universities are smoke-free including OHSU, UofO, and OSU.
Do we need to do more? If so what?

*         Yes, we need to do more.  The tobacco industry is relentless and spends $1 million an hour on marketing and promoting its deadly product.



o   96 percent of money spent on cigarette advertising and promotion is spent where kids are most likely to see it; that is, at the point of sale.   (Federal Trade Commission Report, 2013)

o   Retail "power walls," or displays of packages in retail outlets, are highly visible to kids, establish brand loyalty, and make smoking seem normal.

o   In-store and storefront advertising are the most common ways that Oregon teenagers report seeding tobacco ads-about 7 in 10 Oregon teenagers report seeing tobacco advertising in stores and storefronts. (OHT, 2013)

o   There is strong and consistent evidence that marketing causes kids to smoke, including selection of brands, initiation of smoking, and overall consumption of cigarettes.



*         The Tobacco Industry knows that kids are more likely to try tobacco products if they offer them in fruit, candy, and menthol flavors.

o   While cigarettes are no longer allowed to contain flavors other than menthol, today's tobacco market consists of addictive products that vary widely in sizes, shapes, flavors, and prices-making them appealing to youth and young adults.

o   While cigarette sales have been declining, little cigars and e-cigarette sales-which are largely unregulated-have been increasing significantly.



*         Because kids don't have much money, when tobacco is cheap, they can buy it.

o   If the price of a pack of cigarettes in Oregon increased to roughly $10 a pack-we estimate that teen smoking in Oregon would decrease by close to 50 percent. (Calculation based upon price elasticity of tobacco)
What can be done

*         Raise the price of tobacco. Kids and low income adults are sensitive to price changes. Higher tobacco prices help these groups to not start or to quit and stay quit.

*         Ban flavored tobacco products-fruit and candy-flavored cigars and menthol cigarettes exist to get kids hooked.

*         Limit Oregonians' exposure to Big Tobacco marketing, especially in the retail environment where children are targeted.

*         Create more smoke and tobacco-free environments to reinforce a nonsmoking norm, protect Oregonians from second-hand smoke, and help people quit.
Are there benchmarks the association set realistic or do we have our own goals?  If so what are they?

*         Our benchmarks for cessation are different than ALA's.

*         ALA's report card does not consider what is happening with health systems transformation in Oregon.

o   Cessation benefits, including contracts with the Oregon Tobacco Quit Line, vary by CCO. The budget information on CCO contributions to the Quit Line referenced by ALA are not currently reported by CCOs; thus, ALA underestimates the amount spent on cessation benefits.

o   Additionally, private health insurance companies contract directly with the Quit Line, and they do not interact or report with the state to do so. Therefore, this budget information could not be reported to the ALA.



*         In many ways, Oregon is ahead of the country on cessation benefits.



o   Oregon is one of the first states to require all private insurance companies to cover a minimum of $500 in cessation benefits.

o   Oregon also increased support for the Oregon Quit Line. We provide uninsured callers with both patches/gum to give them extra support in quitting.



*         Tobacco users can quit successfully, and for the 3 out of 4 Oregon smokers who want to quit, now is the time.



*         The Oregon Tobacco Quit Line provides free counseling, medications and Quit Guides to all Oregonians, regardless of income or insurance status.

o   By using the Quit Line or other effective treatments, you are 2 - 3 times more likely to quit and remain quit.

o   1-800-QUIT-NOW (7848-669); and 1-855-DEJELO-YA (335356-92); or www.quitnow.net/oregon/<http://www.quitnow.net/oregon/>  or www.quitnow.net/oregonsp/

o   Coaches at the Quit Line are available over the phone and online 24 hours a day, seven days a week in more than 170 languages.


Holly Heiberg
Health Promotion Strategist
Center for Prevention and Health Promotion
Public Health Division/Oregon Health Authority
800 NE Oregon Street, Suite 730
Portland OR  97232
Holly.Heiberg at state.or.us<mailto:Holly.Heiberg at state.or.us>
971-673-2826


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