We're down to the wire! Key legislation was passed by both houses of the legislature, and now it is up to a conference committee to insert the provision most important to protecting Indiana kids from Big Tobacco. Legislation that was passed in the House does NOT include two critical pieces of the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP): a significant increase in the state's cigarette tax and funding for Indiana's nationally recognized tobacco prevention program.

Now, it's up to your legislators to help pass these life-saving measures by supporting HB 1678 with at least a $1 per pack cigarette tax increase and funding tobacco prevention.

Please fill out the form below to send an email to your lawmakers today.

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Dear [Lawmaker]:

I urge you to stand behind increasing Indiana's cigarette tax by a $1 per pack and using some of the revenue to fund the Indiana Tobacco Prevention and Cessation agency (ITPC) by expressing your support for these life-saving measures to House and Senate leadership.

The passage in the House and Senate of SB 503 is a tremendous opportunity to improve Health our state, but much more needs to be done in conference committee and the final weeks of session. SB 503 lacks two critical measures needed to dramatically reduce the number one preventable cause of death and disease in Indiana - tobacco. The first measure is increasing the cigarette tax by at least $1 per pack and the second is to restore funding to Indiana's nationally recognized tobacco prevention program run by the Indiana Tobacco Prevention and Cessation Agency (ITPC). Please help ensure that these life-saving measures are passed into law by supporting HB 1678, the vehicle for the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP), along with at least a $1 per pack increase in the cigarette tax and restoration of ITPC funding.

Science and experience have shown that increasing the cigarette tax is one of the most effective ways to prevent kids from smoking and help adult smokers quit - the higher the tax, the more adults who quit and the more kids who never start. The tobacco industry will pressure your fellow legislators to keep the increase as small as possible in an effort to reduce the public health impact. I am urging you to support a $1 per pack increase, and a similar increase on all other tobacco products.

It is just common sense to use the first portion of a tobacco tax increase to fund tobacco prevention. In 2003, funds for the prevention and cessation programs at ITPC were slashed by two-thirds, and Indiana smoking rates immediately began to increase again. Now we have the second worst smoking rate in the country. Just a small portion of the new cigarette tax revenue is needed to fund ITPC at the minimum level recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) -- 34.8 million for our state. This funding is supported by Governor Daniels and is critical to demonstrating that the tobacco tax is about health, not just raising money.

A $1 per pack cigarette tax increase combined with the minimum needed funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs will deliver and sustain the maximum health and economic benefit for Hoosiers. Thank you again for your leadership. I look forward to hearing your response on this important issue.
Sincerely,

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