Blueprint for Success
Florida has seen meaningful decreases in tobacco use because of the combined efforts of tobacco prevention and control partners across the state. However, challenges continue to exist in reducing tobacco use within and across specific communities due to factors like tobacco industry influence, emerging and novel products, barriers in availability of and access to tobacco cessation treatments, and a lack of comprehensive tobacco control policies.
In an effort to address these challenges, and ensure that every Floridian can live a healthy life free of the harms of commercial tobacco use, a stand-alone plan that builds on Florida’s long history of evidence-based tobacco prevention and control work was developed. The Florida Tobacco Strategic Plan (FTSP) offers an opportunity to support meaningful actions at the state and local level to reduce the burden of tobacco and eliminate tobacco-related disparities. The FTSP serves as a blueprint to guide tobacco prevention and control partners in their decision-making and to help evaluate their progress toward this goal.
Shift in Focus
To achieve a greater reduction in commercial tobacco use prevalence, Florida’s tobacco prevention and control partners shifted from a focus on the general population’s overall prevalence rate to prioritize those groups with tobacco use rates above the state average. The FTSP includes a focus on groups that are disproportionally burdened by tobacco in Florida.
- Low Income
- Black
- Hispanic
- Poor Mental Health
- Younger Adults
Collaboration Across Sectors
The FTSP presents an opportunity to realign the efforts of partners to ensure that moving forward activities are streamlined, integrated, and targeted to achieve the maximum possible impact.
Knowing that tobacco use is a common risk factor for many chronic illnesses, the FTSP encourages a coordinated approach among tobacco control and chronic disease prevention stakeholders to leverage resources and effectively address risk-factors through evidence-based strategies.
Additionally, the FTSP also supports and reinforces the following comprehensive, strategic plans for the state:
