Health Care Quarterly:

Nevada making progress fighting cancer at the legislative level

A new report shows that Nevada made progress in the cancer fight this year, in part by passing a tobacco-control law. Nevada also made strides by enacting new legislation to protect kids from skin cancer later in life by allowing sunscreen at school.

However, the report found Nevada can do more to implement policies to prevent and reduce suffering and death from cancer.

According to “How Do You Measure Up?: A Progress Report on State Legislative Activity to Reduce Cancer Incidence and Mortality,” Nevada measured up to policy recommendations in five of eight evaluated issue areas. The report was released by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, which is the advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society.

“How Do You Measure Up?” rated states in eight specific areas of public policy that can help fight cancer:

Increased access to care through Medicaid

Access to palliative care

Balanced pain control policies

Cigarette tax levels

Smoke-free laws

Funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs

Cessation coverage under Medicaid

Restricting indoor tanning devices for people under 18

Nevada received the highest marks for its access to Medicaid, palliative care, and its attempts to protect young people from the dangers of indoor tanning. Nevada got moderate marks for its pain policy, cigarette-tax rates and smoke-free laws. The report gave Nevada low marks for the funding of tobacco prevention and cessation programs, and for Medicaid coverage of tobacco-cessation services.

“This year alone in Nevada, 14,810 people will be diagnosed with cancer and, sadly, 5,390 will die from the devastating disease in 2019,” said Tom McCoy, ACS CAN Nevada government relations director. “We owe it to them — and to everyone at risk of developing this disease — to do everything in our power to prevent cancer and improve access to screenings and treatment.”

This year’s report includes a special section examining efforts to stem tobacco use among teens. E-cigarettes have driven a dramatic 36% rise in overall youth tobacco use over the past year — and in statehouses across the country, policymakers have prioritized efforts to keep tobacco products out of the hands of our kids, introducing 88 bills that raised the age of sale for tobacco products.

In Nevada, Senate Bill 263 helped address the youth e-cigarette epidemic by taxing the products and prohibiting use of e-cigarettes in non-hospitality workplaces and restaurants or wherever smoking is prohibited.

McCoy is concerned about what the U.S. Surgeon General is calling a youth e-cigarette epidemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new data in February showing e-cigarette use among high schoolers jumped an alarming 78% in the past year. McCoy worked to help educate lawmakers this session about why SB 263 was needed to help address the issue; the important legislation to tax e-cigarettes and cover them under the state’s Clean Indoor Air Act was signed into law in early June.

While SB 263 appropriated $2.5 million for each year of the biennium for tobacco prevention, education and cessation, on top of about $1 million in existing funding, the CDC’s recommended funding level for Nevada is $30 million. That means even with the additional funding provided by the e-cigarette tax, Nevada will only be spending 11.67% of the CDC recommended amount.

“Raising the sales age to tobacco is the next step in helping Nevada get a handle on this public health crisis,” said McCoy. “Effective legislation to raise the minimum age of sale to 21 should cover all tobacco products, provide public education and training as well as technical assistance to retailers while implementing measures for active enforcement.”

Recently, the Nevada Attorney General’s Office reported the number of cases where retailers were caught selling tobacco to youth under 18 skyrocketed from 13% to 29%, as of April. Should Nevada end the year with an average violation rate above 20%, it could be penalized by the federal government.

“By passing laws that prevent cancer and help patients get the care they need, our lawmakers can save lives and money in Nevada,” said McCoy.

To view the complete report and details on Nevada’s ratings, visit FightCancer.org.

Stephanie Winn is director, region media advocacy for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.

Share