Big Tobacco CEOs and their Big Payday

We all know that Big Tobacco companies are big spenders.

While many states including Wisconsin have been making significant budget cuts to tobacco prevention and control programs, Big Tobacco continues to spend big money to lure new customers and keep their current ones.

Big Tobacco spends more than $1 million an hour to market their products in the U.S. – including $233 million a year on advertising in Wisconsin.

The financial payoff for running a Big Tobacco company and peddling its deadly products is also huge. In 2011, the three men at the helms of Big Tobacco in the U.S. had combined salaries of nearly $32 million.

Last year, Lorillard Inc. CEO Murray Kessler made $13 million, Altria Group CEO Michael E. Szymanczyk made $10.2 million and Reynolds American chief Daniel M. Delen made $8.5 million.

The salaries are as staggering as Big Tobacco’s destructive effects on human health.

Only New York, Florida and California spend more than $32 million a year on tobacco prevention – while 47 states and the District of Columbia spend less. 

If $32 million were put toward tobacco prevention budgets, we could double every single tobacco prevention budget in 16 states: Missouri, Tennessee, Rhode Island, Washington, Idaho, Kansas, New Jersey, Michigan, Georgia, Kentucky, Nebraska, Iowa, Vermont, South Dakota, Massachusetts and Maryland.  

Wisconsin spends $5.3 million a year on our state tobacco prevention and control program. If we invested those Big Tobacco salaries in Wisconsin, we would increase our state prevention funding by seven times. That would bring us closer to the $64 million a year the CDC recommends Wisconsin spend on tobacco prevention programs. 

The battle with Big Tobacco is far from over. Smoking kills nearly 8,000 people a year in Wisconsin and is the leading preventable cause of death. Two young smokers replace every person who dies of smoking each year and tobacco use has created a pediatric epidemic in the U.S.

We know we have a steep uphill battle. We can – we must – and we will – continue to fight against the Big Spending of Big Tobacco. 

Mass. moving forward with graphic in store warnings

According to the Boston Globe, Massachusetts is considering legislation that would require retailers to post large graphic warnings at the point of sale of tobacco products. This legislation would be the first of its kind in the nation. The new law would require all retailers to post graphic signs modeled after the New York Campaign to reduce tobacco use. First this idea has to clear the Public Health Council. The membership of this council is supportive of the measure. The law has a fine structure for businesses who fail to comply. Fines range from $100-300.

The hope with these signs is that smokers who are tempted to purchase just one more pack might make a different choice. The signs rely heavily on images, rather than words. Research indicates that these types of graphic warnings are more effective than plain text warning labels.

Like most tobacco control policies, opposition has arisen. Convenience stores who are concerned about dwindling tobacco revenue in their retail outlets will likely oppose this. The writers of this new policy would likely  welcome a decrease in tobacco revenue because it means fewer packs are being sold.

This proposal is part of the "Putting Prevention to Work" part of the stimulus bill.

The types of warnings being proposed can be viewed here.

First Week of New Year's Resolutions Comes to a Close

Many people make a resolution to change a behavior during the new year. Whether you resolved to eat more fruits and veggies or to get out and appreciate nature more, by this point you have approached an initial evaluation point. This can be a major challenge, as the saying goes, old  habits die hard.

This is also a time when people attempt to quit smoking or give up chewing. If  you are one of the many people who resolve for this year to be different by this point in the new year you should have some success to report.

How has your progress been so far this new year?

Here are some quitting smoking and chewing resources hand selected for you:

My Last Dip

Wisconsin Quit Line

And for those who resolved to do some other healthier thing here are some resources:

Bicycle Maps for all 72 Counties in Wisconsin (though, I would probably wait for the ice to melt)

Wisconsin Winter Sports

Wisconsin Farmer's Markets

This is many more weeks in a happiest of new years and may your resolve remain strong!

New Study: Smoking Raises Type 2 Diabetes Risk Even After Quitting

A new study from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine released a study indicating that the risk for type 2 diabetes is still elevated even after a person quits smoking.

While cigarette smoking is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes, up until now, researchers thought that the risk could be eliminated or reduced by quitting. Researchers attributed the part of the increased risk to post-cessation weight gain.

Physicians caution that an increased risk for diabetes must not be a reason to continue to smoke. The advice is to quit smoking and keep a close eye on your diet and exercise habits.

More details of the study

More information about Diabetes and Smoking

UW-CTRI: Combining cessation medications best for successfully quitting.

Earlier this week UW-Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention (UW-CTRI) released a new study about the effectiveness of common quit-smoking strategies . The study compared a variety of nicotine replacement therapies such as lozenges, the patch, buproprion (brand name Wellbutrin). They also examined combinations such as  the patch and the lozenge or buproprion and the lozenge. They also measured effectiveness of a placebo. They did not examine varenicline (brand name Chantix) the nasal spray, gum, or other methods.

This study found that combining over-the-counter (OTC) nicotine replacement patches and nicotine replacement lozenges lead to more successful attempts to quit. Using any one of the methods was more effective than trying to quit with the placebo, the equivalent to cold turkey. This study is important in a number of ways. Most notably and especially timely is that many people who smoke do not have healthcare or have limited access to their doctor. People who make the choice to quit can take the money that would have gone to purchasing tobacco and pick up OTC smoking cessation methods.

While it is important to talk to a physician whenever making decisions about your health, for those who lack access to medical providers, there is some hope.

     

Recent Report Shows Smoking Cessation Saves Health Care Costs

Earlier this month the National Business Coalition on Health (NBCH) released a 

report about employers and tobacco cessation. "Tobacco cessation is one of the most cost-effective activities an employer can implement to improve the health and productivity of their employees while reducing health care costs," the report stated. The report  also, "finds that health plans are playing an important role in administering smoking cessation benefits and encouraging physicians and other providers to focus on smoking cessation through education, tools, and incentives."

What you need to know:

• Employers pay the cost of higher health care, increased absenteeism, increased life insurance premiums, and lower productivity when they have employees who smoke
• Employer-based tobacco cessation programs should follow CDC best practice
• Employer-based tobacco cessation programs save money and save lives 
• Working with employers locally to improve their coverage is an important pathway to reducing Wisconsin's burden of tobacco

Helpful resource to use with employers who are ready to save valuable healthcare dollars:

• Coverage for Tobacco Use Treatments

UW-CTRI also has great information for employers trying to reduce their costs. 

NicVAX: Nicotine vaccine may be closer to reality

With more than 440,000 annual preventable deaths being attributed to smoking, something that helps people to find  their permanent path to cessation is of the utmost importance. While there are many options currently, the problem of tobacco on the state, national, and global levels is far from gone. The good news is a nicotine vaccine may be closer to reality thanks to some help from federal stimulus dollars.

The intention behind this vaccine is prevent re-lapses among smokers who have successfully quit and as an aid to help people quit in the first place. Because nicotine dependency and addiction are very difficult to treat, this vaccine presents hope for current smokers and for former smokers those who have found a successful way to quit and want to keep it that way.

How does the vaccine work?
NicVAX (registered trademark of Nabi Biopharmaceuticals) is a nicotine deriative bond chemically to a specially selected carrier protein using patented vaccine technology. NicVAX causes the immune system to produce anti-bodies that bind to nicotine and prevent it from entering the brain. The intention is for the anti-bodies the immune system produces to act as sponges which soak up all the nicotine and prevent it from going to the brain. Blocking nicotine from entering the brain helps to curb the reward system that creates and maintains nicotine addiction.

How close are we?
A large grant was given to Nabi Pharmaceuticals to enter into third phase clinical trails. This is the final trial and thus far it has proven very successful in helping smokers who are ready to quit get over the hump of the initial withdrawal period.