Tobacco Issues Take Center Stage at Appleton Joint Finance Meeting

The State's Joint Committee on Finance held a hearing on April 1 at Lawence University to hear the concerns of the members of the public on the 2009-2011 Budget proposed by Gov. Doyle. Tobacco Control's presence, powerful testimony, and passion were on full display.

A "re-cap" of the Appleton Hearing:
* 222 individuals/groups registered to speak at the hearing (largest hearing to date)
* Began at 10am and lasted until 5:45 pm
* There were approximately 50 people in line by 8:15 am; One of the last individuals to speak for the day commented that he arrived at 10:10am
* 3 FACT groups, 3 representatives from the Native American Network, 23 NE Region reps from 12 counties, and 9 N Region reps from 4 counties spoke on tobacco
* 100+ written testimonies were submitted
* A handful of individuals in the crowd not affiliated with our movement asked to wear our stickers
* Groups of 3 or more were organized the morning of the hearing, but larger groups and fewer speakers were requested by some of the legislators in the early afternoon
* 2 individuals spoke in opposition of smokefree workplaces

A "re-cap" of the testimony from all of hearings in regards to the 3 tobacco issues in the budget this year:
* At least 133 adults gave spoken testimony!
* 156 FACT youth participated with 42 presenting spoken testimony
* There were so many supporters of tobacco control that the committee asked us to group testimony together
* Countless amounts of written testimony were submitted.
* The outpouring of public support for strong tobacco control policies during the JFC hearings was covered by local media across the state.

THANK YOU to Lori Duclon, Doug Gieryn, Cheryl Laabs, Bonnie Thomas, and Kate Hoerth along with 30 UWO Nursing Students for submitting written testimony from the Winnebago County Tobacco-Free Coalition.

And a SPECIAL THANK YOU to Lara Vendola-Messer for attending the hearing along with Lisa Brown and Emily Dieringer who gave spoken testimony.

All of your efforts make a difference!

U.S. House Takes Giant Step Toward Historic Regulation of Tobacco Products

the following news release was posted by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids

Washington, DC (April 2, 2009) – The U.S. House of Representatives today put Congress on the brink of truly historic action to reduce tobacco use – the nation’s No. 1 cause of preventable death – by approving legislation granting the FDA authority over tobacco products. We urge the Senate to quickly pass this legislation and resist all efforts to weaken it. There are few steps Congress can take that would make a bigger difference for America’s health than to pass this long-overdue legislation. It will end the special protection the tobacco industry has enjoyed for too long and protect our children and the nation’s health instead.

We applaud House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Representative Todd Platts (R-PA) for their leadership in introducing this strong legislation and quickly moving it forward.

Today’s 298-112 vote underscores the broad, bipartisan support for this legislation and provides strong momentum for enacting it into law this year. It has been endorsed by more than 1,000 public health, faith, medical and other organizations (see list at www.tobaccofreekids.org/reports/fda/organizations.pdf). A poll last year found that 70 percent of American voters support FDA regulation of tobacco products (see details at www.tobaccofreekids.org/fdapoll/). It has been endorsed by scientific authorities including the Institute of Medicine and the President’s Cancer Panel.

Tobacco use kills more than 400,000 Americans and costs the nation $96 billion in health care bills each year. Every day, more than 1,000 children become new regular smokers. Yet tobacco products are exempt from the FDA’s common-sense regulations that apply to virtually every other product we consume, from food to drugs to cosmetics. This allows tobacco companies to market their deadly and addictive products to children, deceive consumers about the harm their products cause, make changes to their products without disclosing them (such as manipulating nicotine levels in cigarettes), and resist any meaningful change to make their products less harmful.

This legislation would grant the FDA the authority and resources to effectively regulate the manufacturing, marketing and sale of tobacco products. Among other things, it would:

· Restrict tobacco advertising and promotions, especially to children.
· Stop illegal sales of tobacco products to children.
· Require larger, more effective health warnings on tobacco packages and advertising.
· Ban misleading health claims such as “light” and “low-tar” and strictly regulate all health claims about tobacco products to ensure they are scientifically proven and do not discourage current tobacco users from quitting or encourage new users to start.
· Require tobacco companies to disclose the contents of tobacco products, as well as changes in products and research about their health effects.
· Empower the FDA to require changes in tobacco products, such as the removal or reduction of harmful ingredients or the reduction of nicotine levels.
· Fully fund the FDA’s new tobacco-related responsibilities with a user fee on tobacco companies so no resources are taken from the FDA’s current work.

Youth Stand Up to Big Tobacco on Kick Butts Day: t-shirts gives area students the power to be heard

Three area schools want to stand up, speak out, and seize control against Big Tobacco. Oshkosh West High School, Winneconne Middle School, and Neenah High School are using the power of the T-shirt to promote youth advocacy against Big Tobacco companies as part of Kick Butts Day (March 25), a national day of youth empowerment sponsored by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

Students created the designs for the shirts after learning all the tactics Big Tobacco uses to get kids to buy their products. They are now using their own words and sales against them by wearing their shirts on Wednesday to educate and engage other youth in the fight.

Oshkosh West’s students chose to focus on how Big Tobacco doesn’t care about how many people they kill: "We really need something for people to die of." –British American Tobacco, 1987. (Yes, a tobacco company actually said this). Tobacco kills about 8000 people in Wisconsin every year, and another 1200 die from diseases related to second-hand smoke.

Winneconne Middle chose to not be a target for Tobacco’s advertising money: "I am not a target of Big Tobacco. They are wasting their $276 million. I won’t fall for their dirty tricks." Tobacco companies spend $276 million on advertising each year in Wisconsin. Only $15 million is allotted to fund the State’s Tobacco Prevention and Control Program.

Neenah High is playing the numbers game with select students wearing shirts with a number like 20% or 400,000. Only about 20% (1 out of 5) high school students in Wisconsin smoke. 400,000 people die annually in the US. 400,000 kids under 18 also start smoking each year. Several students also created a public service announcement for their school. It can be viewed at http://moodle.neenah.k12.wi.us/groups/wnhs/blog

The Tobacco-Free & Drug-Free Communities Coalition of Winnebago County teaches kids that most adults and kids don’t smoke and that Big Tobacco is marketing specifically to them. But, that message is much more effective when it comes from their peers.

Additional information on Kick Butts Day can be found at http://kickbuttsday.org/

My SmokeFree Story website allows everyone to be heard

Do you have a story to share about second-hand smoke? How it affects you and your family and friends? Know someone that has suffered the ill effects of someone else's smoke?

Here's the place to tell story. www.mysmokefreestory.com

When we talk about the effects of secondhand smoke in our lives, we stand a better chance of getting secondhand smoke out of our lives—and our air—for good.

There are two easy ways to share your story:

Call--It's your story, tell it in your own voice— call toll-free, 1-866-94STORY (1-866-947-8679). Just follow a few simple instructions to make an audio submission that could be featured on mysmokfreestory.com. It's a free and easy way to share your thoughts and feelings about the air we all have to breathe.

Click--Just click 'share your story' on the website to tell your smoke-free story, even upload a photo. Then hit "preview" to see your submission before you send it. You'll be contacted to let you know when your story is available online.

Coalition Informs Communities about Statewide Smoke-Free Air

Engaged supporters urged to contact legislators

Several community members came out to one of two Town Hall-style meetings on March 4 in Menasha and March 5 in Oshkosh to learn about the status of the smoke-free air law that Governor Doyle introduced with his budget in mid-February. Supporters listened to a variety of speakers as to the reasons why Wisconsin needs to go smoke-free in all workplaces.

At the Menasha meeting, held at the Menasha Public Library, residents heard from Dr. Shiloh Ramos, who practices family medicine and sits on the Winnebago County Board of Health. He explained that workplace smoke-free air policies dramatically reduce heart attacks in smokers and non-smokers. Jeff Phillips, the Environmental Health Supervisor for Winnebago County, refuted the argument that many opponents of a smoke-free air law make. "Delivery people, plumbers, electricians, sanitarians, and health inspectors don’t get to choose which businesses they go into. They often get left out of the discussion."

Eduardo Sanchez, owner of Solea Mexican Grill in Menasha didn’t open his first restaurant smoke-free, but after listening to the concerns of his employees, polling his customers and receiving a phone call from one of his best customers that had asthma, he decided to go smoke-free. His second location in Neenah opened smoke-free and business couldn’t be better. Finally, Maureen Busalacchi, from SmokeFree WI, gave an update on where the legislation for smoke-free air sits and recommended that supporters contact their legislators with their opinions. Representative Dean Kaufert, answered questions from the audience.

The following evening at the Oshkosh Public Library, community members listened to Dr. Brian Harrison from Affinity Occupational Health explain that any amount of second-hand smoke increase one’s risk for a heart attack which in the end costs everyone in lives and dollars lost. UWO Nursing student Erin Foldstad told her story about working as a waitress in a smoke-filled environment as she tries to put herself through college, noting that the best paying jobs for students are usually in bars and restaurants.

Representative Gordon Hintz, who has been a champion in the Legislature for Tobacco Prevention and Control, gave several reasons why Wisconsin should go smoke-free. "One of the best ways that the State can reduce health care costs, without spending a lot of taxpayers’ money, is to implement a statewide smoke-fee air law." The final speaker of the night, Liz Sanger, from SmokeFree WI, invited the audience to contact their legislator, write a letter to the editor, and visit www.mysmokefreestory.com or the the Holding our Breath campaign website, http://holdingourbreathwi.com to get their voices heard.