State Tobacco Control Policies Research Articles

The relationships between menthol cigarette preference and state tobacco control policies on smoking behaviors of young adult smokers in the 2006–07 Tobacco Use Supplements to the Current Population Surveys (TUS CPS)

To examine relationships between the preference for menthol cigarettes and young adult smoking behaviors, including the extent to which state tobacco control policies moderate these relationships. Cross-sectional design using secondary data from the 2006-07 Tobacco Use Supplements to the Current Population Surveys (TUS CPS) surveys appended with 2006 state-policy data. United States nationally representative survey. A total of 2241 young adult daily smokers and 688 young adult non-daily smokers. The two dependent variables of smoking behaviors were smoking first cigarette within 30 minutes of waking (TTF) and number of cigarettes smoked per day (cpd). Primary independent variables included menthol brand preference and state tobacco control policies (youth access laws, clean indoor air laws and cigarette excise taxes), adjusting for controls. Among daily smokers, there were no significant associations between menthol brand preference and TTF or cpd. However, lower educational attainment, not being in the labor force and the lack of home smoking rules were associated positively with shorter TTF, being white and the lack of home smoking rules were associated positively with cpd. Among daily smokers, state excise taxes were associated negatively with higher cpd. Among non-daily smokers, menthol brand preference was associated positively with shorter TTF, but associations did not vary with state tobacco control policies. Menthol brand preference was not associated significantly with cpd, but male gender, unmarried status and the lack of home smoking rules were associated positively with greater cpd among non-daily smokers. Young adult non-daily smokers who preferred menthol cigarettes were significantly more dependent than those who preferred non-menthol cigarettes, as shown through the shorter TTF. Associations between menthol brand preference and smoking behaviors did not vary with state tobacco control policies.

Use of mentholated cigarettes: what can we learn from national data sets?

Use of mentholated cigarettes: what can we learn from national data sets?

Changes in Cigarette Smoking, Purchase Patterns, and Cessation-Related Behaviors Among Low-Income Smokers in New York State From 2002 to 2005

This study characterized longitudinal changes in cigarette smoking and purchase and cessation patterns among low-income smokers in New York State. Longitudinal tobacco use surveys were conducted in 2002 and 2005. Responses from the 2002 and 2005 surveys were compared among participants who completed both surveys. New York State. Adult low-income smokers (n = 274) were recruited from the Department of Social Services office in Erie County, New York, in 2002 and recontacted in 2005. These included cigarette smoking, cessation and purchase behaviors, awareness and use of the Quitline, and participation in tobacco industry promotions during the 3-year follow-up period. During the 3-year follow-up period, 37 participants (13.5%) stopped smoking. Among smokers, the average number of daily cigarettes smoked decreased from 16.1 to 13.7 cigarettes (P < .01). There were significant increases in the proportion of smokers who reported that they had ever used a stop smoking medication (26.6% to 51.9%), had ever heard of the Quitline (32.5% to 73.0%), or had ever called the Quitline (4.2% to 11.0%). There was an increase in the use of tobacco industry coupons (41.1% to 59.3%). Findings suggest that state and local tobacco control policies and programs are being increasingly utilized by this population; however, tobacco company price promotions are also being increasingly used, offsetting the public health benefit of the tobacco control policies and programs in this low-income population.

Effectiveness of tobacco control among Chinese Americans: A comparative analysis of policy approaches versus community-based programs

Objective To estimate the effectiveness of a tailored multicomponent community-based smoking cessation intervention among Chinese immigrants living in New York City, implemented within the context of state and city-wide tobacco control policy initiatives for the general population. Methods A pre–post-test quasi-experimental design with representative samples from Chinese populations living in two communities in New York City: Flushing, Queens, the intervention community and Sunset Park, Brooklyn, the comparison community. From November 2002 to August 2003 baseline interviews were conducted with 2537 adults aged 18–74. In early 2006, 1384 participants from the original cohort completed the follow-up interview. During the intervention period (October 2003 to September 2005), both communities were exposed to tobacco control public policy changes. However, only Flushing received additional linguistically and culturally-specific community-level tobacco control interventions. Results From 2002 to 2006 overall smoking prevalence among Chinese immigrants declined from 17.7% to 13.6%, a relative 23% decrease. After controlling for socio-demographic characteristics, there was an absolute 3.3% decrease in smoking prevalence attributed to policy changes with an additional absolute decline in prevalence of 2.8% in the intervention community relative to the control community. Conclusion City-wide tobacco control policies are effective among high-risk urban communities, such as Chinese immigrants. In addition, community-based tailored tobacco control interventions may increase the reduction in smoking prevalence rates beyond that achieved from public policies.

A comprehensive review of state laws governing Internet and other delivery sales of cigarettes in the United States.

All U.S. states regulate face-to-face tobacco sales at retail outlets. However, the recent growth of delivery sales of tobacco products by Internet and mail-order vendors has prompted new state regulations focused on preventing youth access and tax evasion. To date, there are no comprehensive and systematic analyses of these laws. The objectives of this study were to: (a) document the historical enactment of the laws; (b) assess the nature and extent of the laws; and (c) examine the relationship between the presence of laws and state tobacco control policy and other contextual variables. Between 1992 and 2006, 34 states (67%) enacted a relevant law, with 27 states' laws (45%) effective between 2003 and 2006. Five states banned direct-to-consumer shipment of cigarettes. The remaining 29 states' laws included a combination of requirements addressing minimum age/ID, payment issues, shipping, vendor licensure and related issues, tax collection/remittance, and penalties/enforcement. States with delivery sales laws have stronger youth tobacco access policies and state tobacco control environments, as well as higher state cigarette excise tax rates and revenue, past-month cigarette use rates, and perceptions of risk of use by adolescents. This paper provides the policy context for understanding Internet and other cigarette delivery sales laws in the U.S. It also provides a systematic framework for ongoing policy surveillance and will contribute to future analyses of the impact of these laws on successfully reducing youth access to cigarettes and preventing tax evasion.

Differential impact of state tobacco control policies among race and ethnic groups

This paper describes patterns of racial and ethnic cigarette use in the United States and discusses changes in state-level tobacco control policies. Moreover, this paper reviews the existing econometric literature on racial and ethnic smoking and discusses the limitations of that research. Finally, this paper outlines an agenda for future research. Patterns of racial and ethnic smoking and changes in state-level tobacco control policies in the United States were obtained from a variety of sources, including surveys and government and private documents and databases. After an extensive literature search was completed, the existing research was scrutinized and recommendations for much-needed future research were put forth. Despite the fact that certain racial and ethnic minorities bear a disproportionate share of the overall health burden of tobacco, less than a handful of econometric studies have examined the effects of state-level public policies on racial and ethnic smoking. The existing literature finds Hispanics and African Americans to be more responsive to changes in cigarette prices than whites. Only one study examined other state-level tobacco policies. The findings from that study implied that adolescent white male smoking was responsive to changes in smoke-free air laws, while adolescent black smoking was responsive to changes in youth access laws. While much has been learned from prior econometric studies on racial and ethnic smoking in the United States, the existing literature suffers from numerous limitations that should be addressed in future research. Additional research that focuses on races and ethnicities other than white, black and Hispanic is warranted. Furthermore, future studies should use more recent data, hold sentiment toward tobacco constant and control for a comprehensive set of tobacco policies that take into account not only the presence of the laws, but also the level of restrictiveness of each policy.

Tobacco lobby political influence on US state legislatures in the 1990s

BACKGROUNDThroughout the 1990s the tobacco lobby was a potent political force in US state legislatures advancing its pro-tobacco agenda.OBJECTIVETo describe the market and political motivations of the tobacco lobby and...

State youth-access tobacco control policies and youth smoking behavior in the United States

Context: State policies aimed at controlling youth access to tobacco are an important component of public health efforts to reduce smoking prevalence among youth and prevent subsequent disease. Objectives: This study sought to assess the extensiveness of state youth access tobacco control legislation in the United States, describe how state policies changed over a 4-year period, explore how various political and economic characteristics are related to state policies, and determine the relationship of youth smoking behavior to state youth tobacco control policies. Design: This descriptive and correlational study utilized data from multiple national surveillance, economic, and sociodemographic data sets. Participants: All 50 states and the District of Columbia provided economic and political data. A standard tobacco-control policy score was developed by an expert panel for each state. Aggregated state-level measures of youth smoking behavior were provided by 79,491 youth in 33 states and the District of Columbia. Main Outcome Measures: Included were extent of state tobacco control policies and changes over time, relationship between state political and economic characteristics and tobacco control policies, and relationship between state policies and youth smoking behavior. Results: State policy scores increased in variability and in mean value over the 4-year period, from a mean score of 7.2 in 1993 to 9.0 in 1996. State policy scores were significantly correlated with several state political and economic variables. States with more extensive tobacco control policies had significantly lower youth smoking rates. There was some evidence that a strong state tobacco economy may limit the effectiveness of tobacco control policies on youth smoking rates. Conclusions: It is possible to reliably measure the extent to which states are achieving important public health goals in limiting youth access to tobacco products. Comprehensive state tobacco control policies are important for increasing prevention and cessation of smoking among youth.