Napa Tobacco Control Program

Is Tobacco a Problem in Napa County?

Tobacco use remains the number one cause of preventable death, disease, and disability in the United States.  Each year, tobacco-related diseases account for approximately 16 % or 40,000 deaths in California. Despite great progress in reducing smoking prevalence in California, large differences in use rates persist for adults and youth by race/ethnicity and among population groups by socioeconomic status, educational attainment, mental health status, occupation, sexual orientation, and geography. In Napa County:

• 6.5% of Adults over the age of 18 smoke cigarettes (2020, California Health Interview Survey)
• 19% of 11th graders in Napa Valley reported current use of electronic cigarettes (California Healthy Kids Survey, 17/19)

Our Work

To promote community health, we advance policies that reduce exposure to second-hand smoke, limit tobacco-promoting influences, reduce the availability of commercial tobacco products, and promote tobacco cessation. Preventing youth initiation and increasing cessation rates includes changing social norms around smoking by creating smoke-free environments and reducing the availability of tobacco products. We engage youth from areas schools in prevention efforts and support a community coalition for a Tobacco Free Napa.

Each year, the American Lung Association issues grades for all 482 cities and 58 counties in California on policies for smoke-free environments, smoke-free housing, and reducing sales of tobacco products. Napa County and all jurisdictions within it received Ds and Fs in 2021. Check out the grades.

Funding

The Napa County Tobacco Control Program is Napa County’s lead agency for tobacco prevention activities, funded by the California Department of Public Health. Our work is made possible by the passage of Proposition 99 in 1988 and Proposition 56 in 2016. These propositions increased the tax on tobacco products and directed a portion of the taxes to statewide prevention and education programs.