New Report Says Secondhand Smoke Costs Minnesota $215.7 Million Annually

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New Report Says Secondhand Smoke Costs Minnesota $215.7 Million Annually
    EAGAN, Minn., March 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- According to a new
study, Health Care Costs and Secondhand Smoke, $215.7 million is spent each
year in Minnesota to treat health conditions caused by exposure to
secondhand smoke. Dr. Marc Manley of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of
Minnesota (Blue Cross) will present the report findings to the Minnesota
House Commerce and Labor Committee during its 4 p.m. hearing today on the
Freedom to Breathe legislation.
    "This study is based on the 2006 U.S. Surgeon General's report on
secondhand smoke and also on Minnesota-specific data, so it provides the
first-ever look at the health care costs related to secondhand smoke in
Minnesota," said Hugh Waters, Ph.D., lead researcher for this study and
health economist at Johns Hopkins University.
    In comparison, the $215.7 million annual cost of secondhand smoke
exposure exceeds the 2006 state budget for early childhood education,
transportation and the Department of Agriculture combined.
    "These data show that passing a comprehensive statewide smoke-free law
is good health policy and good economic policy," said Marc Manley, M.D.,
vice president and medical director for population health at Blue Cross.
"The 2006 Surgeon General's report made it clear once again that secondhand
smoke exposure harms non-smokers. Knowing how much this is costing us -- as
businesses, individuals and as a state -- it is also very important to
consider these costs in the debate at the capitol."
    The Health Care Costs and Secondhand Smoke study, conducted by Johns
Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in collaboration with Blue Cross,
calculated the excess medical expenditure at $215.7 million, based on the
most current data available. This estimate is conservative in that it does
not include costs for long-term care or lost productivity. The study
analyzed the cost of diseases caused by secondhand smoke as identified in
the 2006 Surgeon General's report on secondhand smoke. For adults, those
diseases include lung cancer, heart attacks and other heart disease.
Diseases caused by secondhand smoke in infants and children include low
birth weight, acute lower respiratory illness, otitis media, middle ear
effusion, and asthma. The study calculated the proportion of each disease
caused by secondhand smoke and found that at least 66,000 Minnesotans are
treated for diseases caused by secondhand smoke each year.
    In addition, the new study documents that at least 581 deaths in
Minnesota are caused by exposure to secondhand smoke each year-deaths that
could be prevented if exposure to secondhand smoke were eliminated. "These
lives lost to secondhand smoke are equivalent to the size of whole towns
like Center City, Kandiyohi, Ivanhoe or Bigfork," added Manley. "Even one
life lost is too many."
    About the Report
    The study analyzed the costs associated with exposure to secondhand
smoke in Minnesota. The researchers used economic modeling together with
multiple Minnesota-specific data sources to examine the state's health care
costs and deaths associated with conditions for which the U.S. Surgeon
General has determined a causal link to secondhand smoke. Data sources
include: Blue Cross claims (as the largest insurer in the state), Minnesota
Department of Health, Minnesota Department of Human Services, Center for
Medicaid and Medicare Services, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and related
peer-reviewed literature.
    Researchers included: Hugh R. Waters, Ph.D., a health economist and
assistant professor of International Health at Johns Hopkins University and
Jon Samet, M.D., M.S., the Jacob I. and Irene B. Fabrikant professor in
Health, Risk and Society, and chair of Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins
University. Dr. Samet was the senior scientific editor for the 2004 and
2006 Surgeon General reports on smoking and secondhand smoke, respectively.
Blue Cross researchers were Steven S. Foldes, Ph.D., director of research
and evaluation and Nina Alesci, M.P.H., senior research consultant.
    For a copy of the report visit http://www.PreventionMinnesota.com .
    Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, with headquarters in the St.
Paul suburb of Eagan, was chartered in 1933 as Minnesota's first health
plan and continues to carry out its charter mission today: to promote a
wider, more economical and timely availability of health services for the
people of Minnesota. A not-for-profit, taxable organization, Blue Cross is
the largest health plan based in Minnesota, covering 2.7 million members in
Minnesota and nationally through its health plans or plans administered by
its affiliated companies. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota is an
independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association,
headquartered in Chicago. Go to http://www.bluecrossmn.com to learn more
about Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota.
SOURCE Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota
http://www.bluecrossmn.com
http://www.PreventionMinnesota.com
CONTACT:
Karen Lyons, +1-651-662-1415, or, Joel
Swanson, +1-651-662-2882, both of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of
Minnesota