The Commonwealth Diabetes Coalition, together with other coalitions and prevention leaders, is teaming up to find ways to take back the funds from the Tobacco Control Fund as per Public Law 13-38.
"Anytime somebody smokes or drinks, there’s a tax. Thirty percent of all those taxes go into the Tobacco Control Fund,” said Coalition chair George Cruz. “The last quarter of 2007 and first quarter of 2008 have generated a little bit over $2 million and every quarter it continuously generates."
Public Law 13-38 recognizes that smoking is the single most critical risk associated with the leading chronic diseases in the CNMI. "It is therefore in the best interest of the CNMI to increase taxes on alcohol and tobacco products. This increase in revenue would be reserved for funding tobacco control programs."
According to Cruz, "We have not been given that money to address these issues in the past three years. We don’t know why."
"So right now we’re putting pressure on everybody, so we can try to have a bigger success in addressing these issues," he added.
Cruz said that "the problem with the new Legislature is that they don’t want to spend and that is fine."
He emphasized that prevention leaders and the coalition are only looking for the funding that they deserve and have been denied them the past three years.
"Only $2 million a quarter. We’re looking at an average of $6 to $8 million a year. That is still a third of what was spent on the dialysis center," Cruz said.
"But to help prevent and to reduce cancer and other issues, it's worth it; $4 million is worth it," he said.
Heart disease and cancer make up more than 60 percent of the off-island medical referral costs. More than $2 million is spent each year treating diseases related to tobacco and alcohol use in the CNMI.
Public Law 13-38 states that "studies indicate that the pervasive use of tobacco among minors and young adults will likely decrease if the price of tobacco is increased. In response to concerns for the health of the youth and public as a whole, a number of states have increased the excise taxes on tobacco products.
"Furthermore the Healthy People 2010 Initiative, which the CNMI has adopted, has identified the objective to increase the national average of state and federal taxes on tobacco products to $2.00 by year 2010."
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