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For immediate release:
September 2, 2009
(09-140)
OLYMPIA
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“Tobacco prevention and
control is a priority in our state, and it’s paying off. Fewer people who smoke
means fewer people suffering or dying from tobacco-related diseases. It also
means our state will save billions of dollars in future health care costs,” said
Governor Chris Gregoire. “We must continue to look for ways to reach people who
are addicted to this deadly habit, and keep kids from ever starting so they’ll
live longer, healthier lives.”
The adult smoking rate in
Washington has dropped more than 30 percent since the state began its Tobacco
Prevention and Control Program in 2000. There are now 295,000 fewer people
smoking in the state and an estimated 98,000 people will be spared early,
tobacco-related deaths. The decline in smoking will save an estimated $2.8
billion in future health care costs. The state has reached its 10-year goal of
reducing the adult smoking rate to 16.5 percent or less by 2010. With that the
Department of Health has established a new goal of reducing adult smoking to 14
percent or less by 2013.
The department is
refocusing efforts to help groups still smoking at higher rates. There are
770,000 adults who smoke in Washington; the majority are from either lower
income or lower educational backgrounds. The smoking rate for people with low
income is 31 percent; that’s more than three times as high as the 10 percent
smoking rate for people with higher income.
“Tobacco use has a very
real impact on peoples’ lives - particularly those with fewer resources,” said
Secretary of Health Mary Selecky. “People often smoke because it seems like
their only break from many of life’s challenges. Over the past year we’ve spent
a lot of time talking with and learning from low-income smokers so we can find
better ways to provide them the support they need to quit.”
In June the Department of
Health launched the multi-media “Dear Me” campaign, featuring people who smoke
from around Washington writing a letter to themselves about their struggle to
quit. The campaign directs people to the Washington State Tobacco Quit Line
(1-800-QUIT-NOW, 1-877-2NO-FUME in Spanish) and
Quitline.com
(www.Quitline.com) for free quit support.
To accompany the launch of
the “Dear Me” campaign, Quitline.com was redesigned. People who visit the site
can see the “Dear Me” videos, write their own “Dear Me” letter, and read those
of other tobacco users. The site also features videos of quit coaches talking
about what happens when people call the quit line and offering quit tips for
those not ready to call. Quitline.com also has an interactive quit plan and
quizzes designed to test knowledge of the quit process. Information and videos
of quit coaches are available in Spanish.
The Department of Health is
working to reach people with lower incomes and educational backgrounds through
programs like WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) and Head Start. And the
Medicaid program provides free quit help to eligible clients, including
prescription medications, if appropriate. Washington is also one of the founding
partners of the national “Become an Ex” campaign. Led by the American Legacy
Foundation, the program targets groups that continue to smoke at higher rates.
People in Washington can
receive free quit support by calling the toll-free Tobacco Quit Line. Since the
new federal tobacco tax took effect in April, the quit line has had an
unprecedented number of calls. Callers speak with a trained quit coach who works
with them to identify smoking triggers, provides information about coping with
withdrawal symptoms, helps develop a personal plan to quit, and sends a packet
of quit materials. More than 125,000 people in Washington have called the quit
line for help since it opened for business in November 2000.
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