NALHD supports education and policy change to reduce tobacco related disease and deaths. As the image above shows, price increase is an effective way to prevent smoking…especially among youth. Because 90% of adult smokers start smoking as teens, policies that raise the price of cigarettes and other tobacco products now in Nebraska will reduce the number of future smokers. The result will be fewer Nebraskans who die from tobacco related causes (currently 2500 each year) and lower tobacco related costs to our state (currently $795,000,000 each year).
Visit the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids website to explore their easy-to-understand tobacco facts and see how Nebraska measures up.
You’re not alone if you think it is a good idea to raise the price of cigarettes and tobacco. In a 2017 poll of registered voters, across all 3 media markets in Nebraska, 71% favored a $1.50 increase in the tax on tobacco. Read more about the specifics of this poll at this link.
