Oral

As of July 2010, nearly 50% of the United States population is now protected from exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) due to a strong 100% smokefree workplace, restaurant, and bar law at the local or state level. While this is a significant milestone, half of the U.S. is left without these protections, and funders are allocating fewer dollars for tobacco control efforts which is critical to meeting tobacco control objectives. On a positive front, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) has allocated funds for tobacco control and could be the stimulus needed to secure strong 100% smokefree laws where there are none, thereby increasing the percent population protected from exposure to SHS. This panel will briefly review current trends in smokefree air, provide an extensive overview of ARRA’s Communities Putting Prevention to Work (CPPW) effort, and discuss the potential impact of CPPW projects and ongoing efforts funded by other sources to reduce secondhand smoke exposure, increase the percent of population covered by smokefree laws, and other tobacco policy benchmarks.

Session Objectives: Discuss Federal public health goals, particularly with respect to tobacco control. Evaluate local and state grantee case studies on use of CPPW funds. Describe methods to increase synergies between CPPW projects and other local and state tobacco control projects and smokefree campaigns.

CE Credits: Medical (CME), Health Education (CHES), Nursing (CNE), Public Health (CPH)