BC-WY-Tobacco Report,0493

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - Wyoming ranked ninth in the nation in funding programs that aim to dissuade children from using tobacco products, according to a national report released Wednesday by a coalition of public health groups.

Wyoming spends $5.9 million a year on tobacco prevention, which is 79.9 percent of the minimum amount recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the report says.

Last year, Wyoming ranked eighth, spending the same amount of money.

Only three states - Maine, Delaware and Colorado - meet CDC recommended minimum levels. Fourteen are funding tobacco prevention programs at about half the minimum levels, and 28 states and the District of Columbia are spending less than half the minimum amount.

Another five states - Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire and Tennessee - allocate no significant state funds for tobacco prevention, the report says.

The annual report was released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society and the American Lung Association.

The report said tobacco companies spend more than $44 million a year - seven times what the state spends on prevention - on marketing their products in Wyoming.

The state will collect $38.7 million this year from the tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes and will spend 15.3 percent of it on tobacco prevention, according to the report.

"Wyoming is making important progress in protecting kids from tobacco, but its ultimate success depends on whether it continues to properly fund and implement its tobacco prevention program," William V. Corr, executive director of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said in a statement. "It is more important than ever that Wyoming step up its tobacco prevention efforts because the tobacco companies are spending record amounts to market their deadly and addictive products, often in ways that appeal to kids. Tobacco prevention is a smart investment that protects kids, saves lives and saves money by reducing tobacco-related health care costs."

Janet Jares, prevention program manager for the Wyoming Department of Health, said Wednesday that the state has made significant progress in reducing tobacco use among its youth.

The percentage of Wyoming high school students saying they smoked within the last month dropped from 39.5 percent in 1995 to 22.5 percent today, Jares said. Smokeless tobacco use among the same students dropped from 25.1 percent in 1995 to 14.3 percent now, she said.

"The reason is the Wyoming Legislature has stepped up to the plate to ensure we have adequate funding for tobacco prevention programs," she said.

Each year, tobacco use claims 700 lives and costs the state $136 million in health care bills in Wyoming, according to the report.

The report says the nation's progress in reducing smoking is at risk unless states boost funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs. The United States has significantly reduced smoking among youth and adults over the past decade, but recent CDC surveys indicate this progress has stalled.