Gillian Schauer, Senior Program Manager, Tobacco Cessation Resource Center   Last week, I was among many others in Washington State who celebrated the exciting news that the adult smoking prevalence had dropped to a new low this year of 15.3 percent, down from 16.5 percent last year. Washington’s adult smoking prevalence is not only the sixth lowest in the nation, but is significantly lower than the national average of 18.4 percent. While year after year press releases and article... [More]

Gillian Schauer, Program Manager, Tobacco Cessation Resource Center:   A recent U.S. study in Health News reported that many health care providers are not receiving adequate training in tobacco intervention, stating that 87% to 93% of doctors and other health care providers receive less than five hours of training. The results of this recent study are not surprising to the Tobacco Cessation Resource Center (TCRC). As noted by other researchers, providers are increasingly pressed f... [More]

Gillian Schauer, Program Manager, Tobacco Cessation Resource Center:   Washington State celebrated a great achievement last week: the smoking rate for adults has continued to drop over the past year. Now, only about 16.5 percent of all adults in Washington smoke, according to the Washington State Department of Health. According to the CDC, smoking in Washington State has dropped by over 25 percent since 2000. That translates to about 240,000 fewer adult smokers than in 2000. Washington’s... [More]