Update: New study shows tobacco prevention spending saves over $5 for every $1 spent
December 15, 2011
A study published today by the American Journal of Public Health (link to article) provides some of the strongest evidence yet that tobacco prevention and cessation programs not only reduce smoking and save lives, but also save money by reducing tobacco-related health care costs.
The study found that from 2000 to 2009, Washington State’s tobacco prevention and cessation program saved more than $5 for every $1 spent by reducing hospitalizations for heart disease, stroke, respiratory disease and cancer caused by tobacco use. Over the 10-year period, the program prevented nearly 36,000 hospitalizations, saving $1.5 billion compared to $260 million that was spent on the program.
The study comes at a critical time, as funding for prevention programs that keep kids from smoking and help smokers quit is under attack at both the federal and state levels.
And it underscores why Congress should protect the Prevention and Public Health Fund created by the health care reform law rather than slash funding by as much as 68 percent, as some lawmakers have proposed.
Get more details from our press statement.
And take action today to protect these vital federal prevention funds: