Tobacco Free Action Communities

Ellen Reinhard, Director and Lori Rotolo, Community Engagement person for the “Tobacco Free Action Communities in Ulster, Dutchess and Sullivan Counties” were the guest speakers at our April 12^th meeting.

Ellen and Lori used a Powerpoint® presentation to outline the goals of the TFAC which are to, reduce the danger of indoor and outdoor second-hand smoke and to discourage youth from ever starting to smoke.

The following is an excerpt from their website:

Tobacco Free Action Communities in Ulster, Dutchess and Sullivan (formerly SmokeFree Dutchess and Tobacco Free Action Coalition of Ulster) is part of a network of statewide partners working to support New York State's tobacco-free goal. Each partner consists of a community engagement component and a youth action component (branded as Reality Check). Partners work to:

• Reduce the negative impact of tobacco product marketing and price promotions on youth and adults at the point of sale.

• Increase the number of local laws and voluntary policies that prohibit tobacco use in outdoor areas.

• Decrease secondhand smoke exposure in multi-unit housing, with an emphasis on policies that protect the health of low-income residents.

• Promote policies that reduce tobacco use imagery in youth-rated movies, and on the Internet and social media.

Ellen and Lori were able to go into more detail during the question and answer period of the presentation.