Pregnancy and Smoking in Wisconsin
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Background
Smoking is a known cause of some cases of preterm birth, low-birthweight and very low-birthweight, resulting in increased neonatal deaths and increased health care costs.
Nearly 13% of low birthweight deaths are due to smoking. About 18% of Sudden Infant Deaths are attributable to smoking. (WI Burden of Tobacco Report, DHFS)
A 10% increase in total price of cigarettes and other tobacco products would equal an 8% drop in the number of pregnant women who smoke. A 10% increase in the price of cigarettes alone would lead to a 7% drop in the number of pregnant women who smoke. (American Journal of Public Health 2001, Ringel and Evans 91 (11): 1851)
Smokers with family incomes at or below the national median are four times as likely to quit smoking because cigarette price increases than those with higher incomes. (CDC, MMWR 47 (29): 605-609 (July 31, 1998) http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr)
Smoking and Pregnancy in Wisconsin
Wisconsin has one of the highest pregnant women smoking rates in the country. In 2000, 16.5% of pregnant women reported smoking during pregnancy. That totals 11,428 mothers. (Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention, "Insights: Smoking in Wisconsin," 11/12)
Overall, 3.1% of prenatal expenditures are due to smoking, costing the state of Wisconsin $8.3 million per year. (WI Burden of Tobacco Report, DHFS)
Prematurity/low birthweight is one of the costliest reasons for a hospital stay. Charges averaged $58,000 for these stays. Of these babies 10% had charges of at least $146,000. By contrast, stays for newborns typically average $4,300. (March of Dimes Data Book for Policy Makers, 2003)
Costs associated with prematurity and low-birthweight are not limited to the hospital stay at birth. For the most premature and tiniest babies and their mothers, medical costs remain higher for 18 months, compared with those for normal newborns and their mothers. (March of Dimes Data Book for Policy Makers, 2003)
Medicaid costs related to tobacco use are $422 million. (Wisconsin Medicaid)
An 85 cent increase in the tobacco tax in WI would result in a 15.6% drop is pregnant smoking, which means that there will be 9,050 fewer smoking-affected births over the next five years. This would save $10.3 million dollars in health care costs over those five years. (Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids “Pregnancy Related Benefits and Cost Savings From Raising Cigarette Taxes”)
March of Dimes Policy
The March of Dimes urges pregnant women to stop smoking as part of its effort to prevent birth defects, low-birthweight and premature birth. The March of Dimes supports proposals such as increased excise taxes on tobacco products with these funds to be used for health programs designed to reduce smoking or provide health care for pregnant women.
Recommendation
The March of Dimes Wisconsin Chapter urges you to support raising the cost of tobacco products by 20% as a means to reduce the number of pregnant women who smoke. Revenue raised should be dedicated to tobacco control programs and/or to cover health care for pregnant women.
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