Location

825 North Capitol Street, NE
3rd Floor
Washington, DC 20002
Phone: (202) 442-5433
Fax:     (202) 442-4825
Email: TobaccoControl@dchealth.com

Mission

The mission of the Tobacco Control Program (TCP) is to:

• Eliminate exposure to environmental tobacco smoke
• Promote tobacco cessation among adults and youth
• Prevent initiation of tobacco use by youth
• Identify and eliminate disparities among diverse/special populations

Program Description

The Tobacco Control Program is funded through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Cigarette smoking is the single leading preventable cause of premature death in the United States. In 1990 alone it was responsible for about 420,000 deaths. These smoking-related deaths, according to the Office of Technology Assessment in its 1993 testimony to Congress, far exceeds the combined deaths from AIDS, accidents, homicides and suicides. Each smoker who died from smoking-related diseases would have lived an average of about 15 additional years had they not smoked. For the population at large, this premature death translates to about six million years of potential life lost. Not counting the untold psychological hardship and suffering from smoking-related disease and death, Americans spent a total of $50 billion in direct medical costs and $45 billion in indirect costs of treating smoking-related diseases in 1993 alone. Cigarette smoking indeed poses a great risk to the physical, economic and psychological well being of Americans.

Did you know?

A cigarette has more than 4,000 chemicals and over 40 of them are cancer-causing. Click here for a partial listing.

• Over 900 Washingtonians die from smoking every year.
• Cigarette smoking is to blame for 14 percent of all deaths in the District.
• Cigarette smoking is attributable for 27 percent of all cancer deaths in the District.
• If current trends continue, 4,000 District children alive today will eventually die from smoking.