Wilson County to Receive $56,000 in Funding to Reduce Tobacco Use

NASHVILLE  – Tennessee Health Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH, will join other state and local officials on Thursday, March 27, at the Wilson County Health Department in Lebanon to present $55,909 in funding as part of the Tennessee Tobacco Settlement Program.

Each county in Tennessee will receive funding during this three-year program to reduce the burden of tobacco use in the state. All counties are challenged to set goals and select one or more projects that address three topics:  eliminating smoking during pregnancy; reducing infants’ and children’s exposure to second-hand smoke; and preventing child and adolescent tobacco use. Wilson County will focus its first year project on encouraging school-aged children not to start smoking.

Funding from the Tobacco Settlement was provided to the Tennessee Department of Health for fiscal years 2014-16 to address the state’s high rate of tobacco use and prevent expensive related medical costs. The plan to distribute $15 million over three years has been generated with input from all 95 counties. This plan includes a variety of projects to target behaviors designed to protect the health of Tennessee’s most vulnerable populations:  unborn babies, pregnant women and children.  

Who:               John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH, Tennessee Health Commissioner

Leslie Humphreys, MPA, Assistant Commissioner for Community Health Services, Tennessee Department of Health

                        Rick Long, Director of Regional and Local Health, Tennessee Department of Health

                        Annette Haley, Mid-Cumberland Regional Director, Tennessee Department of Health

                        Lee A. Wood, Wilson County Health Director, Tennessee Department of Health

                        Sen. Mae Beavers, District 17

What:              Presentation of Tennessee Tobacco Settlement Program funding

When:             Thursday, March 27, 1 p.m.

Where:            Wilson County Health Department

                        927 East Baddour Parkway

                        Lebanon, Tennessee  37087

MEDIA CONTACTS:  Woody McMillin, 615-741-3446 or Woody.McMillin@tn.gov or Shelley Walker, 615-253-5184 or Shelley.Walker@tn.gov.