Advocates for a higher tobacco tax cite Indiana’s lung cancer rate, other problems

• By Chloe White, TheStatehousefile.com  Feb 14, 2025

According to the Indiana Department of Health, roughly 11,000 Hoosiers die each year from smoking-related deaths.

In an effort to change this statistic, dozens of organizations and hundreds of students and advocates flooded the Indiana Statehouse Wednesday for Tobacco-Free Day.

Sanjana Malineni is a VOICE youth advocate, who attended the event to represent the organization’s mission. A Statehouse File reporter spoke with her about VOICE and the key issues it aims to address.

“We’re here to advocate for legislative changes, specifically for an increase in nicotine taxation in order to make it less accessible for youth who should not be able to get their hands on these products,” said Malineni.

Kathy Walker is a program coordinator for Indiana tobacco cessation efforts through the Indiana Rural Health Association. She attended Wednesday’s event in hope of teaching the harm of tobacco use in the state.

“We’re here to advocate for an increase in the tobacco tax in Indiana, and this is way overdue,” she said.

Currently, Indiana has the 13th lowest tax on cigarettes in the U.S., at around 99 cents.

“There’s a series of states … that have high tobacco rates beyond the national [rate], and we are still one of them, so we need to do something to bring that down,” said Walker.

In addition to advocates sharing their work, several speakers took the stage to highlight key issues and initiatives, like Dr. Nasser H. Hanna, who emphasized the impact of lung cancer, and the importance of advocating to state representatives.

“Lung cancer is the No. 1 cause of cancer death in women, in men, in rural Hoosiers, in urban Hoosiers, in Black Hoosiers, in white Hoosiers, in brown Hoosiers. It is No. 1, and it’s not even close,” said Hanna.

“My advice to you is to keep the message very simple: This is the most important thing that your legislator will do to improve the health and wellness of your community, of their neighbors, of their friends.”