By Tom Latek
Kentucky Today
Cancer patients, survivors and advocates are marking the American Cancer Society’s 48th annual Great American Smokeout, which will take place Thursday, by calling upon elected officials across the state to do more to reduce tobacco use in Kentucky.
Each year, more than 8,900 Kentuckians die from a smoking-related disease, according to the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN). Doug Hogan, government relations director for ACS CAN in Kentucky, notes the Great American Smokeout is not just an opportunity for those who use tobacco to set a plan to quit. “It’s also a time for Kentucky to stand up to Big Tobacco. For too long, Kentucky has allowed the tobacco industry to addict people to deadly, cancer-causing products. It’s time to say, ‘Enough is enough.’ Our residents deserve better.”
He is calling on lawmakers to prioritize using JUUL settlement funding for youth tobacco prevention. “Kentuckians need well-funded, fact-based tobacco prevention and programs to help those already addicted quit to counteract Big Tobacco’s deceptive marketing strategy and prevent another generation of people from becoming addicted to these deadly and addictive products. In Kentucky, tobacco use is still the leading preventable cause of disease and death, and smoking is now linked to at least 12 types of cancers, including lung, liver and colorectal cancers.”
Hogan’s bottom line: “On this Great American Smokeout, we urge lawmakers to support people who want to quit using tobacco by increasing tobacco prevention investments, which will reduce tobacco usage and addiction and lead to fewer deaths and suffering from tobacco-related diseases like cancer.”
Free resources on quitting tobacco can be found at Quit Now Kentucky or by calling 1-800-QUIT-NOW or through the American Cancer Society’s cessation program, Empowered to Quit.