The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) of Rhode Island held their annual lawmaker meet and greet on Thursday night at their headquarters located at 931 Jefferson Boulevard, which gives organizational staff and volunteer advocates the chance to speak with local legislators about their aspirations for the upcoming legislative session and beyond.

The two-hour event drew four legislators, including Mia Ackerman (District 45), Senator Josh Miller of District 28 (Cranston/Providence), who chairs the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services, Chris Millea – who just won a seat in the House District 16 representing Cranston that was held by Republican Robert Lancia – and Justine Caldwell, a Pilgrim High School grad who beat incumbent Anthony Giarrusso for the House District 30 seat representing East and West Greenwich.

In 2019, ACS CAN hopes to help further safeguard people against the ills created by tobacco dependence, as their primary goal is to seek an increase in funding for the state’s tobacco control program, which is run through the state Department of Health and provides evidence-based tobacco control methods aimed to prevent kids from starting smoking and cessation programs to help smokers quit.

The state’s tobacco control program is meant to be funded through taxes collected on the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products, in addition to money gathered annually from a landmark accord reached in 1998 between 46 states and the five largest American tobacco companies, known as the Master Settlement Agreement. The federal Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends that Rhode Island be spending $12.8 million of the approximately $198 million that is raised annually through these two avenues.

However, Rhode Island actually spends just one fifth of one percent of that money on its tobacco control program – about $387,000. Rhode Island is not alone in taking their cigarette tax dollars elsewhere besides trying to lessen the prevalence of smoking. According to the Public Health Law Center, states collected around $27.5 billion from the Master Settlement Agreement in FY18, but only 3 percent of that nationwide went to smoking prevention and cessation programs.

Regardless, ACS CAN hopes to work in collaboration with other advocacy groups and legislators to increase to $3.2 million in funding for the tobacco control program in the next year and incrementally raise that until they reach the CDC’s recommendation of $12.8 million. They also seek to raise the minimum purchase age for tobacco products in the state from 18 to 21.

The other long-term goal is to advocate for the passage of a sugary drink tax statewide – which has never been done before in the country.

The proposed bill would institute a 1-2 cent per ounce excise tax on drinks that contain added caloric sugar – which can be anything from fruit juices to sugar-packed energy drinks, and any other non-alcoholic drinks with added caloric sweeteners that have at least 15 calories per 12 ounces. Proponents seek the tax to result in a 20 percent increase in the cost of such beverages. Drinks sweetened by sugar substitutes, drinks with natural sugars and medically necessary foods would be exempt from the tax.

If enacted and fully deployed, bill advocates say the tax could raise $40 million for the state, however they also expect an uphill battle if the bill gains traction this session, not only from drink manufacturers but from restaurants, convenient stores and supermarkets as well.

However, since approximately 20 percent of all cancers are caused by lack of exercise, improper diet, physical inactivity and excess weight, and the highest single source of calories in American diets – for both children and adults – come from sugary drinks, ACS CAN believes putting their support behind the tax is for the good of Rhode Islanders.

“It's going to make people think about living a healthier lifestyle. That's all we want,” said Robert Dulski, government relations director for ACS CAN Rhode Island. “We don't want people to get cancer.”

For the legislators who showed up to the event, they made it clear they were allies to the mission of preventing cancer in the state.

“Cancer is not a partisan issue,” said Millea, who lost his father 25 years ago to cancer and his uncle just three days prior to this year’s election of the disease. “What you’re doing here is real. It hits home for me…This is a people issue, not a partisan issue.”

Miller said that his one of his primary areas of focus on the health and human services committee during the upcoming session would be to continue looking at how to prevent teenagers from vaping, and closing tax loopholes on certain tobacco products, like mini cigars.

Miller explained how he believes ACS CAN does a great service to the state by bringing people forward to tell their stories of survival and loss in order to help put their mission into perspective for lawmakers. Those stories belong to people like Josue Flores, who survived stage four testicular cancer and is now moving onto join the Rhode Island National Guard in April. Flores shared his story again for the attendees Thursday night.

“Bringing the personal stories along with the data is so important,” Miller said. “I believe strongly it takes data and the sentiment you bring to it in order to bring about change. Thanks for what you all do.”