Tobacco Free Zone sign at the Lancaster County Courthouse in Lancaster. (Shutterstock)
Despite receiving billions in tobacco settlement payments and taxes, Pennsylvania received bad grades in the American Lung Association’s report on the state of tobacco control.
In Pennsylvania, 19.7% of high schoolers use tobacco. A little over 4% of them smoke.
The adult smoking rate in the commonwealth is 14.9%.
So what is being done to reduce those numbers? According to a recent report from the American Lung Association, not enough.
The 2025 “State of Tobacco Control” report evaluates state policies on actions taken to eliminate tobacco use. Pennsylvania did not earn a passing grade with most of them.
The report grades states in five areas that have been proven to prevent and reduce tobacco use and save lives. Pennsylvania received an F grade in funding for state tobacco prevention programs, level of state tobacco taxes, and ending the sale of all flavored tobacco products.
The commonwealth earned a D grade in strength of smokefree workplace laws and coverage and access to services to quit tobacco.
“Here in Pennsylvania, we are seeing tobacco industry lobbyists at the local level working to stop or weaken proven tobacco control policies,” said Elizabeth Hensil, advocacy director for the American Lung Association in Pennsylvania. “The tobacco industry is also introducing new products that appeal to youth like e-cigarettes that mimic smartphones, kid-friendly flavors, and flavored nicotine pouches that are heavily marketed by social media influencers.”
Despite receiving more than $1.3 billion from tobacco settlement payments, tobacco taxes, and other state funding, Pennsylvania only funds tobacco control efforts at 14.8% of the level recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to the report.
“In 2025, policymakers in Pennsylvania must focus on preserving state funding for comprehensive tobacco prevention and control programs, closing loopholes in Pennsylvania’s Clean Indoor Air Act, and ending the sale of all flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes,” said Hensil.
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