_______________________, read first time and referred to Committee on
MADAM PRESIDENT:
I offer the following resolution and move its adoption:
A SENATE RESOLUTION urging the Legislative Council to
create an interim study committee to consider opportunities to reduce
the risk of death and disease among smokers who will not quit smoking
by considering tobacco harm reduction policies that encourage smokers
to switch from cigarettes to less risky tobacco products such as
smokeless tobacco.
Whereas, For decades, Indiana has pursued policies
intended to encourage residents who smoke to quit and to
discourage others who do not smoke from starting;
Whereas, While cigarette smoking rates declined
substantially from 1965 to 2004, the rate of decline has
slowed in recent years; however, according to the federal
Centers for Disease Control, 21.2% of adult residents of
Indiana are still smoking cigarettes;
Whereas, Numerous public health organizations, such as
the Institute of Medicine, the American Council on Science
and Health, the Royal College of Physicians, and the World
Health Organization, have all recognized that there is a
continuum of risk among tobacco product types, and that the
risks associated with cigarette use are substantially higher
than those associated with the use of smokeless tobacco;
Whereas, While abstaining from all tobacco is clearly the best and most effective way for smokers to reduce their risk of disease and premature death (no tobacco product has shown to be safe), it is appropriate to consider whether those
who will not abstain can substantially reduce their risk of
disease and premature death by switching from cigarettes to
smokeless tobacco products that present less risk; and
Whereas, The Legislative Council is requested to
authorize an interim study committee to answer particular
questions for the purpose of assisting the General Assembly
in evaluating the inclusion of tobacco harm reduction as a
strategy for reducing smoking-attributable death and disease
and the associated health care costs in Indiana: Therefore,
SECTION 1. That the Indiana Senate urges the Legislative
Council to establish an interim study committee for the purpose of
assisting the legislature in considering the inclusion of tobacco harm
reduction strategies to reduce smoking-attributable death and disease.