Reports: Arkansas Not Spending Enough to Keep Kids from Smoking
By: KARK 4 News
Updated: December 6, 2012
When it comes to keeping Arkansas kids from smoking cigarettes, reports show the Natural State isn't spending enough.
The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids says Arkansas will collect $286 million this year from the 1998 tobacco settlement, but it will spend just 6 percent of that on prevention.
The Health Department says 43 percent of Arkansas kids under 18 were smoking in 1998, but now that figure is closer to the national average, which sits at about 18 percent.
"We're going to have to work really hard to do that, and we're hoping to be more innovative in the way we use social media and counter pressure from the tobacco industry," says Dr. Gary Wheeler with the Arkansas Department of Health.
The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids says Arkansas will collect $286 million this year from the 1998 tobacco settlement, but it will spend just 6 percent of that on prevention.
The Health Department says 43 percent of Arkansas kids under 18 were smoking in 1998, but now that figure is closer to the national average, which sits at about 18 percent.
"We're going to have to work really hard to do that, and we're hoping to be more innovative in the way we use social media and counter pressure from the tobacco industry," says Dr. Gary Wheeler with the Arkansas Department of Health.
