Leaders at the American Cancer Society (ACS) and CVS Health recently stated that they have launched a new initiative to give institutions of higher learning funds to become tobacco and smoke-free.
The goal of the Tobacco-Free Generation Campus Initiative is to speed and broaden the number of U.S. campuses that are completely tobacco and smoke-free.
"The American Cancer Society and CVS Health are targeting an important age group at a critical time to improve public health for generations to come," Howard Koh, former assistant secretary of health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said. "It is a great example of how public-private partnerships can aggressively move one step closer to a tobacco-free generation."
Koh is currently a professor at the Practice of Public Health Leadership and director of the Leading Change Studio at the Harvard School of Public Health.
The initiative, worth $3.6 million, will last for three years. It will offers 125 colleges the chance to earn the grants to remove smoke and tobacco for their campuses. The partnership developed this initiative to bring about the first tobacco-free generation in the U.S., a goal that many health professionals believe in.
"This partnership with CVS Health allows us to help make campuses tobacco-free using proven strategies that will reduce smoking and tobacco use rates among this population," Cliff Douglas, vice president for tobacco control and head of the American Cancer Society's Center for Tobacco Control, said. "Creating a tobacco-free generation is a lofty goal, and reaching it requires a broad spectrum of strategies targeting multiple audiences. To be successful, it is imperative to prevent and stop smoking among college students."
