The city of Morgan Hill received the fourth highest “Overall Tobacco Control Grade” among 15 cities and the unincorporated area in Santa Clara County, according to the “State of Tobacco Control 2016-California Local Grades” report released by the American Lung Association.
However, Morgan Hill only earned an overall grade of “C” behind the county’s unincorporated area, which got an “A” as well as “B” marks for Campbell and San Jose. Gilroy and Saratoga also received “C” grades in the report.
Meanwhile, the cities of Los Altos Hills, Los Altos, Milpitas and Santa Clara received “F” scores as did the state of California.
The report assigns grades for every state in four key areas: tobacco prevention and control spending, smokefree air, tobacco tax and cessation coverage. California ranks at the bottom of the pack in funding for proven tobacco prevention and research programs. The 87-cent per pack state tobacco tax is 35th in the nation.
“If California is to make progress in reducing the number one cause of preventable death in the state, it’s clear that raising the tobacco tax and increasing program funding is our best opportunity,” the report states.
At the local city level, the rankings are based on three categories with several subcategories within each one. The ALA ranked Morgan Hill with a “B” for “Smokefree Outdoor Air,” which is based on local smoking restrictions in outdoor areas including dining, recreation, public events and worksites; an “F” for “Smokefree Housing,” which is based on the number of nonsmoking housing units; and an “A” for “Reducing Sales of Tobacco Products,” which is determined by ordinances adopted to curb tobacco sales. Adding to Morgan Hill’s overall score of 7, which was one point shy of a “B” grade, were bonus points for “Emerging Products Definition-Secondhand Smoke” and “Emerging Products Definition-Licensing.”
Every year, tobacco-related diseases impact the lives of thousands of Californians, according to the report summary. In the past year, more than 16,000 kids started smoking, and over 220,000 high school aged kids smoked regularly. Currently, there are more than 440,000 kids alive today who will ultimately die prematurely from tobacco-related disease.
“The purpose of the State of Tobacco Control 2016-California Local Grades report is to increase public knowledge about local laws that protect residents from the deadly toll of tobacco and to encourage local leadership to take action where improvement is needed,” the report states.
