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Cigarette smoking is responsible for an estimated 438,000 deaths a year, making it still the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. The result is $167 billion in annual costs due to lost productivity and medical expenditures. Seventy percent of adult smokers report they want to quit completely, and more than 42 percent try to quit each year.
Statewide comprehensive tobacco prevention and cessation programs have proved effective in reducing smoking levels. States spend only about 3 percent of the $21.7 billion available to them from tobacco excise taxes and tobacco industry legal settlements on tobacco prevention and control. And recent declines in state funding for these programs appear to have contributed to a slowed reduction in smoking rates. During tight budget times, many states are also raising money for tobacco prevention by increasing cigarette taxes and committing tobacco settlement funds, which are due to increase in 2008.
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