New Report: Illinois Lags Behind in Efforts to Reduce Tobacco Use
“State of Tobacco Control” reveals high tobacco use rates, significant tobacco-related health care costs and more than 18,000 deaths each year

[January 27, 2018] SPRINGFIELD

Illinois could do more to save lives by implementing proven tobacco policies, according to the American Lung Association in Illinois’ 2018 “State of Tobacco Control” report, released today.

The 16th annual report grades states and the federal government on policies to prevent and reduce tobacco use, and finds that Illinois lags significantly behind the nation to reduce and prevent tobacco use, and state policymakers must do more to prevent the death and disease associated with tobacco use.

“Nationwide, smoking rates have continued to decline to historically low levels, yet tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease, killing more than 18,000 Illinois residents each year,” said Kathy Drea, vice president of tobacco control and advocacy for the Lung Association in Illinois. “Tobacco use is a serious addiction, and the fact that 17 percent of adults and 32 percent of high school students in Illinois use tobacco highlights how much work remains to be done in our communities to prevent and reduce tobacco use.”

This year’s “State of Tobacco Control” finds Governor Bruce Rauner and the state legislature are failing to enact proven policies that will reduce tobacco use and save lives:

• Funding for State Tobacco Prevention Programs – Grade F
   

• Smokefree Air - Grade A
   

• Level of State Tobacco Taxes - Grade F
   

• Coverage and Access to Services to Quit Tobacco - Grade F
   

• Minimum Age of Sale for Tobacco Products to 21 – Grade F

Some key points of the report reveal that in Illinois:

• The state spends more than $5 billion on health care costs due to smoking.
   

• The adult smoking rate is 15.8 percent, and the adult tobacco use rate is 17.4 percent

• The high school smoking rate is 9.9 percent, while the high school tobacco rate is 32.8 percent.
   

• More than 18,000 Illinois residents die each year from tobacco-related illness.

The Lung Association in Illinois calls on Governor Rauner and other Illinois policymakers to advocate for laws to increase the tobacco sales age to 21, restore statewide funding for tobacco prevention and cessation efforts, and continue to work to support smokefree air policies in all workplaces, medical facilities, college campuses, multi-unit housing, parks, playgrounds, festivals, fairs, and other outdoor facilities.

“We know how to reduce tobacco use in this country. ‘State of Tobacco Control’ looks at proven methods to save lives and protect the health of all Americans,” said Drea. “Illinois elected officials must act to implement these proven policies, which will prevent tobacco-caused death and disease, and help keep our lungs healthy.”

[Jill Thompson, American Lung Association]

About the American Lung Association in Illinois

The American Lung Association in Illinois is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease, through research, education and advocacy. The work of the American Lung Association is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; to improve the air we breathe; to reduce the burden of lung disease on individuals and their families; and to eliminate tobacco use and tobacco-related diseases. For more information about the American Lung Association, a holder of the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Guide Seal, or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) or visit: Lung.org.