Tobacco Use

PSR NATIONAL SUMMARY

The Prevention Status Reports highlight—for all 50 states and the District of Columbia—the status of public health policies and practices designed to address 10 important public health problems and concerns. The three policies and practices in this report are recommended by the Institute of Medicine, World Health Organization, Community Preventive Services Task Force, US Surgeon General, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention because scientific studies support their effectiveness in preventing or reducing tobacco use (1–5):

Increasing the price of tobacco products, such as through state cigarette excise taxes
Establishing comprehensive, statewide smoke-free policies to protect all nonsmokers from exposure to secondhand smoke
Sustaining comprehensive tobacco control program funding

Other strategies also supported by scientific evidence include hard-hitting media campaigns and systemic changes to increase access to and use of cessation services (2).

State cigarette excise tax

The amount of state excise tax, in dollars, on a pack of 20 cigarettes.

Rating	State excise tax
Green	≥$2.00 per pack
Yellow	$1.00–$1.99 per pack
Red	<$1.00 per pack

How These Ratings Were Determined
These ratings reflect the amount of cigarette excise tax in each state as reported by CDC’s State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation (STATE) System (6). The data reflect laws in effect as of September 30, 2015; data do not reflect laws that had been enacted but had not yet taken effect.

Comprehensive state smoke-free policy

A state law that prohibits smoking in all indoor areas of private workplaces, restaurants, and bars, with no exceptions.

Rating	Locations covered by state smoke-free policy
Green	Workplaces, restaurants, and bars
Yellow	One or two of the three locations
Red	None of the locations

How These Ratings Were Determined
These ratings reflect the comprehensiveness of each state’s smoke-free policies as reported by CDC’s State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation (STATE) System (6). The data reflect laws in effect as of September 30, 2015; data do not reflect laws that had been enacted but had not yet taken effect.

State funding for tobacco control

The amount of state funding allocated for state comprehensive tobacco control activities.

Rating	State funding level
Green	≥100% of CDC recommendation
Yellow	50.0%–99.9% of CDC recommendation
Red	<50.0% of CDC recommendation

How These Ratings Were Determined
These ratings reflect the extent to which state tobacco control funding meets CDC’s recommendations. Ratings were determined by comparing each state’s FY 2015 funding for comprehensive tobacco control programs with recommendations from CDC’s Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs—2014 (2,7). According to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids’ Broken Promises to Our Children report, the funding data are accurate as of each state’s fiscal year 2015—which ended June 30, 2015, for most states—and do not include additional funds that might have been received later (7).

References

US Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the Surgeon GeneralExternal Link. Rockville, MD: US Department of Health and Human Services; 2014.
CDC. Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs—2014. Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services; 2014.
Institute of Medicine. Ending the Tobacco Problem: A Blueprint for the NationExternal Link. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2007.
World Health Organization. WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic, 2008—The MPOWER PackageExternal Link. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization; 2008.
The Task Force on Community Preventive Services. Part 1: Changing Risk Behaviors and Addressing Environmental Challenges. Chapter 1―TobaccoExternal Link. In: The Guide to Community Preventive Services: What Works to Promote Health? New York, NY: Oxford University Press; 2005.
CDC. State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation (STATE) System. Accessed Nov 2, 2015.
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Broken Promises to Our Children: A State-by-State Look at the 1998 State Tobacco Settlement 16 Years LaterExternal Link. Washington, DC: Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids; 2015.

**State count includes District of Columbia.

Page last reviewed: 4/10/2019