PACT Notes

December 21st, 2018
A new study found that increases in adolescent vaping from 2017 to 2018 were the largest ever recorded in the past 43 years for any adolescent substance use outcome in the U.S.
In just one year e-cigarette use among youth has skyrocketed, increasing by:
  • 90% among 12th graders
  • 96% among 10th graders
  • 74% among 8th graders
To read the press release click here.
the U.S. Surgeon General, Jerome M. Adams released the Advisory on E-Cigarette Use Among Youth. The Surgeon General released calls to action for parents, teachers, schools, as well as states, communities, tribes, and territories. This is only the fifth advisory the Surgeon General has issued in the last 20 years and the first one ever on tobacco. The Surgeon General also released important resources dedicated to addressing e-cigarette use among youth and young adults.
To view American Lung Association’s response to the Surgeon General’s release, please click here.
“JUUL has affected me personally and those around me. There is not one day that goes by that you don’t see somebody vaping, especially teenagers”
To read the full article submitted by Tobacco Resistance Unit (TRU) Ambassador Matthew Kelly click here.
To learn more about becoming a TRU ambassador click here.
The Waseca City Council adopted a new ordinance governing sale of tobacco products Tuesday. The measure passed with four council members in favor and three in opposition. The new ordinance makes it a misdemeanor for anyone to sell cigarettes or any other items containing nicotine to a buyer under 21 years old within the city limits. The ordinance criminalizes only sellers and not buyers. The ordinance won’t go into effect until three months from now to give retailers time to prepare for the change. Waseca joins North Mankato, St. Peter and 18 other cities in increasing the tobacco sales age.
To view the article click here.
Skidmore College will be a smoke-free and tobacco-free campus, effective Jan. 1, 2019. Smoking and tobacco use — as well as the use of all e-cigarettes — will be prohibited throughout all Skidmore College property, including outdoor areas. Congratulations Skidmore!
To access the article click here.
Please mark your calendars for January 29th, 2018 at 1:00pm to attend the #MSAinPA: Understanding the Master Settlement Agreement and Budget Process Webinar! Please note that the time of this webinar has been changed.
In anticipation of the Governor’s budget in February and budget negotiations within a new General Assembly, PACT will be providing comprehensive advocacy resources and technical assistance to advocates in Pennsylvania.
PACT will be offering two separate trainings:
  1. #MSAinPA: Understanding the Master Settlement Agreement and Budget Process Webinar on January 29th will provide a detailed look at the budget process as well as background and history on the importance of MSA funding for tobacco prevention and control. The intent of the first training is to provide background and prepare everyone for the start of budget season – which is marked by the Governor’s budget address in the beginning of February.
  1. #MSAinPA: Campaign Kickoff Webinar will be offered after the Governor’s budget address to outline the campaign. This webinar will showcase campaign strategies for this year, either proactive or reactive, based upon information released by the budget address and response from legislators.
Both of these webinars are crucial for advocates to attend to understand and support the policy priority of maintaining this lifesaving funding for tobacco control programs and services. Please forward this information out to all service providers, coalitions and community stakeholders.
To register, click here.
The American Lung Association has released new e-cigarette resources that include information about health effects as well as information that parents, schools and teens should know.
Please view the following NEW E-Cigarettes Resources
On behalf of the entire PACT Team we’d like to wish you all a wonderful holiday season. PACT Notes will be taking a break for the next week but will resume on Friday January 4, 2019. Happy New Year!

PACT Notes

PACT Notes – December 14, 2018

PACT Notes – December 14, 2018

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the landmark 1998 legal settlement between the states and the tobacco companies, which required the companies to pay more than $200 billion over time as compensation for tobacco-related health care costs.

The report challenges states to do more to fight tobacco use – the nation’s No. 1 preventable cause of death – and to confront the growing epidemic of youth e-cigarette use in America. In Pennsylvania, 8.7 percent of high school students smoke cigarettes, while 11.3 percent use e-cigarettes. Tobacco use claims 22,000 Pennsylvania lives and costs the state $6.3 billion in health care bills annually.

PACT Notes – December 7, 2018

PACT Notes – December 7, 2018

This week Senator Mario Scavello (PA-40) released a co-sponsorship memo for Tobacco 21. He is actively looking for support in the Senate and plans to introduce legislation in the session starting in the new year. While PACT is still advising that advocates wait until the new year to start their legislative visits, if you have any connections with Senators you think might be interested in support please reach out to PACT and we are happy to connect them with Senator Scavello’s Office.

PACT Notes – November 30, 2018

PACT Notes – November 30, 2018

The CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health released an article in the Journal, Nicotine & Tobacco Research. Their study found that people living with mental health conditions are more likely to smoke cigarettes than people without these conditions, and are also likely to smoke more often, be more dependent on nicotine, have stronger withdrawal symptoms when trying to quit, and be overall less successful in quitting. This study shows that cigarette smokers with mental health conditions had increased quit attempts after reporting having seen the TV ad featuring Tips participant Rebecca, a former smoker living with depression.