HONOLULU (AP) - Hawaii ranks third in the nation in funding programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit.
The ranking was released Wednesday by a coalition of public health groups including the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association and American Lung Association.
The report says Hawaii spends $10.7 million a year on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, which is 70 percent of the $15.2 million recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Hawaii this year will collect $187 million in revenue from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes. But according to the report, the state will spend only 5.7 percent of it on tobacco prevention programs.
The report notes Hawaii has the fourth highest tobacco tax in the nation, at $3.20 per pack.
