麻豆区

As the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives begin to prepare appropriations bills for Fiscal Year (FY) 2027, ASAM and fellow medical societies and health organizations are calling on Congress to provide $310 million in funding for tobacco prevention and cessation initiatives run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“It is essential that Congress provide CDC with necessary resources to reduce the death and disease caused by tobacco use and other risks to public health,” the groups wrote in a coalition letter sent to House and Senate appropriations leaders.

The letter highlights notable initiatives from the CDC that have prevented tobacco use and helped individuals reduce or quit tobacco use entirely. This includes the Tips from Former Smokers media campaign and funding for state quitlines, which provide telephone-based counseling services and in many states, tobacco cessation medications to support people who are looking to stop tobacco use.

While smoking rates have gone down, this progress is not being seen across all communities. Smoking rates remain particularly high among those with lower levels of income, as well as in the South and Midwest.  

The ongoing use of e-cigarettes among youth also remains a serious public health concern, as this exposure puts young people at risk of developing nicotine/tobacco use disorder.

Given these ongoing health threats to adults and children, the CDC’s public health initiatives targeted at tobacco use remain critically important.