A study by the American Cancer Society says Ohio is falling behind on prevention. Ohio Public Radio's Andy Chow reports.
A cigarette tax increase, a tobacco prevention funding hike and more restrictions on tobacco-use… the American Cancer Society says Ohio could do better with all these. While Gov. John Kasich did call for a 60-cent increase in the cigarette tax earlier this year, that proposal has stalled.
Jeff Stephens with the American Cancer Society says there is a sense of urgency when it comes to strengthening these policies that goes beyond just improving public health.
Stephens: “Right now we really want to go after this tobacco-control issue because it is such a burden on our state. It’s a health metric that doesn’t make Ohio economically attractive or competitive.”
There were some bright spots in the report. Ohio earned top marks for its smoke-free laws along with its Medicaid expansion.
But overall the state scored well in just three of 12 issues.
