To reduce the number of Maine children who start smoking.

 

To increase access to treatment services for those who want to quit using tobacco.

 

To protect all Maine citizens from secondhand smoke.

 

To protect the Fund for a Healthy Maine.

 

To reduce the rate of childhood obesity in Maine and diseases related to obesity among children and adults.

The Challenge

20.2% of Maine adults still smoke, and for ages 18-24 that figure jumps to 28% and 34% for those 25-34.  14% of high school students and 5.7% of middle school students in Maine smoke on one day or more a month; 8% of high school students smoke frequently (20 or more days a month).

 

About 16% of pregnant women in Maine smoke during the last three months of pregnancy.  That figure climbs to 28% for women under the age of 20, 40% for women with less than a high school education, and 39% for women who have incomes below $15,000.

In addition, 19% of people with insurance smoke, while nearly 40% of those without insurance smoke.

People diagnosed with major mental illness or substance abuse smoke approximately 2-3 times the rate of the general population.

 

Among non-smokers, nearly 45% of high school students ad 39% of middle school students report being exposed to secondhand smoke in the last seven days.

 

The Coalition worked hard in the 123rd legislative session to ensure that all tobacco settlement funds would be allocated to the Fund for a Healthy Maine (FHM). Most of the additional funds went to the FHM.  The new biennial budget provides $11.36 million in additional funding for FHM programs in FY 08 and $14 million in FY 09 (including $2.3/$2.5 million increases in FY 08/09 for the tobacco program).  Over $5 million in FY 07 and in the new biennium was diverted, however, from the FHM to the General Fund.