AUGUSTA - A proposal by Assistant House Majority Leader Rachel Talbot Ross, D-Portland, aims to preserve Maine's tobacco settlement funds, combat tobacco use and take steps to promote equity in public health. The bill was introduced before the Legislatures Health and Human Services Committee on Wednesday.
LD 1693 would create the Trust for a Healthy Maine, ensuring tobacco settlement funds are used to reduce tobacco addiction and improve the health of Maine children and young adults. The bill would also end the sale of flavored tobacco products in Maine, discourage new smokers by increasing Maine's cigarette excise tax by $2 per pack, bolster the state obesity prevention program and place in statute the recently created Office of Population Health Equity within the Maine Department of Health and Human Services.
"As a policymaker, when I advocate for health equity, I am working to create a system that makes life better for every person, in every town, in every corner of Maine," said Talbot Ross. "LD 1693 offers us a unique opportunity to recognize and rebuild the underpinnings of Maine's public health framework that have directly and indirectly contributed to health disparities in our communities."
Dr. Joe Anderson, a Lewiston-based pediatrician and board member of the Maine Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, spoke in support of the proposal from his perspective as a physician as well as from personal experience.
"As an ex-smoker of 15 years who became hooked as a teenager smoking flavored cigarettes, I can personally attest to how enticing flavored tobacco products can be to young adolescents, often leading to long-term use and addiction," Anderson wrote in his testimony to the Legislature's Health and Human Services Committee. "Research has shown that raising cigarette prices through increased taxes is a highly effective measure for reducing smoking among youth. Today, Maine has the highest rate of smokers in New England, and its time we made a commitment to change that statistic."
The measure drew support from a range of advocates for Maine children and public health, including Allyson Drag, government relations director for the American Heart Association.
"Tobacco use takes a devastating toll on our State killing more than 2,400 residents every year and costing Maine more than $811 million in health care costs much of it borne by our residents. It is a problem that starts with our children because nearly 90 percent of current smokers begin when they are 18 or younger," Drag said. "There is a clear need to act now and protect our kids from tobacco company efforts to addict them."
The Health and Human Services Committee will hold a work session on the proposal in the coming weeks.
Contact:
Jackie Merrill [Talbot Ross], c. 812-1111