The city of Morgan Hill was issued an Overall Tobacco Control Grade of a “C” by the American Lung Association in California in its recently released 2017 State of Tobacco Control-California Local Grades report.
While Morgan Hill fared well in the “Reducing Sales of Tobacco Products” category and in the “Smokefree Outdoor Air” category with grades of “A” and “B” respectively, the city received a failing “F” mark in the “Smokefree Housing” category outlined on the report.
Earning seven overall points in the grading system, Morgan Hill fell just one point short of receiving a “B” grade. Each year, the American Lung Association in California releases its report to track how well California municipalities protect their citizens from the burden of tobacco. All 58 counties and 482 incorporated cities and towns are graded on four key areas of tobacco control. The purpose of the 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 city of Gilroy also received an overall mark of a “C,” although it earned only five points in the grading system. Meanwhile, unincorporated Santa Clara County received a top mark of an “A” in the same 2017 report.
