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Report: Tenn. sacrificing the "health of its children"

tobaccofreekids.org

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WMOT)  -- A new report chides Tennessee for spending a tiny fraction of the billions of dollars it receives in tobacco settlement money on smoking cessation programs.

The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids says Tennessee will receive just over $403 million this year from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but the state will spend just $5 million on smoking cessation.

The Campaign’s John Schachter says Tennessee ranks 36th in the nation when it comes to funding programs to keep kids from smoking, or helping them quit once they start.

“These are programs that work, that keeps kids from smoking, that help smokers quit, and by not adequately funding the state is literally sacrificing the lives and health of its children, and that’s simply not acceptable.”

Schachter says Tennessee could save billions of dollars in health care costs down the road by spending a few million now to keep another generation of young people from taking up smoking.