Press Releases

2019 Year in Review: Tobacco’s Harm in Minnesota

Minnesota Took Action to Address Tobacco Addiction, But Many Challenges Remain

MINNEAPOLIS (12/19/19) – In 2019, Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation celebrated progress to address tobacco addiction, including significant local and statewide policy wins. However, the state still faces a youth nicotine epidemic, stubborn adult smoking rates and tobacco-related health disparities.

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation is a coalition of more than 60 organizations that share a common goal of reducing youth smoking and ending tobacco’s harm for good. In 2020, the coalition will redouble its efforts to address tobacco’s harm. The coalition is united behind four major policy goals that reduce youth smoking and nicotine addiction, including increasing tobacco prices, raising the tobacco sale age to 21, restricting or prohibiting flavored tobacco products, and funding tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

“Minnesota made historic progress this year but some communities and youth still face high levels of tobacco use and nicotine addiction,” said Janelle Waldock, Vice President of Community Health and Health Equity, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota and Co-Chair of Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation. “Lawmakers must act quickly and comprehensively to protect the next generation of Minnesotans from Big Tobacco’s latest threats.”

Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease in Minnesota, costing the state 6,300 lives and $7 billion a year in lost productivity and health care costs. Tobacco use in any form puts youth at risk for health problems and a lifetime of addiction. Unfortunately, the tobacco industry continues to lure kids into addiction through easy access, kid-friendly flavors and aggressive marketing.

Tobacco Prevention in 2019 – the Good News:

• Dozens of Minnesota communities joined the Tobacco 21 movement. Thirty-five Minnesota communities passed Tobacco 21 in 2019, bringing the state total to 56 Tobacco 21. Tobacco 21 now covers nearly 40 percent of the state population. The statewide Tobacco 21 bill also gained significant momentum, clearing the Minnesota House and one key Senate committee.
• More communities limited access to flavored tobacco products. In 2019, four Minnesota communities passed restrictions on flavored tobacco products to address tobacco addiction among youth and priority populations (Rushford, Lilydale, Hennepin County and Golden Valley). Today, 10 Minnesota communities restrict where all flavored tobacco products can be sold, four of which prohibit the sale of flavored tobacco products altogether.
• Minnesotans can breathe easier. The Minnesota Legislature voted to improve the Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Law by expanding the definition of smoking to include e-cigarette use. Beginning August 1, everyone in the state was protected from harmful e-cigarette aerosol in indoor public spaces.
• All Minnesotans can access quit-smoking help. Minnesota legislators also allocated funding for the Minnesota Department of Health to provide and promote statewide quit-smoking services. Thanks to this funding, Minnesotans will have continuous access to quit-smoking help. QUITPLAN® Services, the state’s current free quit-smoking helpline, is ending in 2020.
• Court action holds Big Tobacco accountable. In September, the Ramsey County District Court ordered R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (Reynolds) to pay Minnesota its unpaid tobacco settlement fees. For several years, Reynolds has shirked its responsibility to pay their share of settlement fees. Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation urges lawmakers to dedicate a portion of recouped funds to youth tobacco prevention.

Earlier this month, Attorney General Ellison, Governor Walz and Lt. Governor Flanagan announced that Minnesota is suing JUUL for illegally marketing to youth. Minnesota is facing an epidemic of youth nicotine addiction driven primarily by JUUL e-cigarettes. Aggressive youth-focused marketing campaigns by JUUL included several tactics from Big Tobacco’s playbook and targeted kids as young as eight years old.

Despite all these positive developments, Minnesota continues to face major tobacco-related challenges that affect the health and pocketbooks of all Minnesotans. In 2020 and beyond, Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation will look to address these issues.

Tobacco Prevention in 2019 and beyond – the Challenges:

• Amid a youth epidemic, youth nicotine use rose again. The 2019 Minnesota Student Survey found that 26 percent of Minnesota 11^th-graders reported using an e-cigarette in the past month. Eleven percent of 8^th-graders said they use e-cigarettes regularly, which is nearly double the 2016 rate. Youth cigarette smoking is at historic lows, but rising e-cigarette rates have erased nearly two decades of progress to reduce youth tobacco use.
• Like other states, Minnesota faced an influx of vaping-associated injuries and deaths. The outbreak of vaping-related lung injuries raised concerns and brought heightened attention to issue of youth vaping. The Minnesota Department of Health is on the leading edge of national efforts to pinpoint the cause of the lung illnesses. The state needs to address the high number of youth who are regularly vaping e-cigarettes.
• Adult smoking rates have stalled and young adult e-cigarette use is rising. While smoking rates in Minnesota had been declining for decades, the 2018 Minnesota Adult Tobacco Survey found after years of declines the adult cigarette smoking rate has stalled out at 14 percent. The survey found that e-cigarette use among young adults aged 18-24 nearly doubled, from 13 percent to 22 percent. Forty-four percent of e-cigarette users in 2018 said they had never smoked cigarettes – a significant increase from 2014 (12 percent).
• Tobacco control funding is declining as ClearWay Minnesota reaches its sunset. The CDC recommends Minnesota invest nearly $53 million in tobacco prevention and control efforts each year. The 2019 How Do You Measure Up? reportreleased by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids Broken Promises Report released today highlight the urgent need for Minnesota to invest in tobacco prevention programs.

ClearWay Minnesota, which will sunset by 2021, currently funds the majority of the state’s spending on tobacco prevention. ClearWay Minnesota was created as a limited-life organization with a portion of the state’s tobacco settlement. After ClearWay Minnesota closes its doors, the state will fall into the red zone for tobacco prevention spending, unless the state dedicates more funding to that effort.

• The federal government has failed to act. Despite having sweeping power to regulate all tobacco products, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and Administration have failed to take meaningful steps to protect residents from tobacco addiction. Graphic warning labels, non-addictive nicotine levels and removing menthol tobacco products are all helpful steps that have not been implemented. In September, President Trump announced the FDA would clear the market of all flavored e-cigarettes but now seems to be backtracking from this promise.

Tobacco Prevention in 2020 – the Solutions:

Thankfully, there are common-sense solutions to these challenges but it will require a comprehensive, multi-layered approach. During the 2020 Legislative Session, Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation will advocate for several steps to stem youth tobacco addiction, including Tobacco 21, prohibiting the sale of all flavored tobacco products, investing in youth prevention and increasing tobacco prices.

“Minnesotans from all sides of the state and political spectrum are eager for lawmakers to take bold action to protect our kids and reduce the burden of tobacco addiction on our state,” said Molly Moilanen, Vice President at ClearWay Minnesota^SM and Co-Chair of Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation. “We look forward to working together to make Minnesota a leader in tobacco prevention in 2020 and beyond.”

About Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation

Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation is a coalition of more than 60 organizations that share a common goal of saving Minnesota youth from a lifetime of addiction to tobacco. The coalition supports policies that reduce youth smoking and nicotine addiction, including increasing tobacco prices, raising the tobacco sale age to 21, limiting access to candy-, fruit- and menthol-flavored tobacco, and funding tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

Partners include: A Breath of Hope Lung Foundation, A Healthier Southwest, African American Leadership Forum, Allina Health, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association in Minnesota, Apple Tree Dental, Association for Nonsmokers – Minnesota, Aurora/St. Anthony Neighborhood Corporation, Becker County Energize, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, Cancer Legal Care, CentraCare Health, Children’s Defense Fund-Minnesota, Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, ClearWay Minnesota^SM,  Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio – CLUES, Dodge County Public Health, Education Minnesota, Essentia Health, Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare, HealthEast, HealthPartners, Hennepin Healthcare, Hope Dental Clinic, Horizon Public Health, Indigenous Peoples Task Force, ISAIAH, JustUs Health, LAAMPP Alumni, Lake Region Healthcare, Lincoln Park Children and Families Collaborative, Local Public Health Association of Minnesota, March of Dimes, Mayo Clinic, Medica, Meeker McLeod Sibley Community Health Services, Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians, Minnesota Cancer Alliance, Minnesota Council of Health Plans, Minnesota Hospital Association, Minnesota Medical Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, Minnesota Oral Health Coalition, Minnesota Public Health Association, MN Association of Community Health Centers, MN Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Model Cities of St. Paul, Inc., NAMI Minnesota, North Memorial Health Care, NorthPoint Health and Wellness Center, Olmsted Medical Center, Open Cities Health Center, PartnerSHIP 4 Health, Perham Health, Preventing Tobacco Addiction Foundation, SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, Shift MN, St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, Steele County Public Health, Tobacco Free Alliance, Twin Cities Medical Society, UCare, Vision In Living Life “Change is Possible”,  WellShare International and Zumbro Valley Medical Society. Find out more at: smokefreegenmn.org.