Martinez Maintains "B" Grade in Tobacco Report for Third Year

By David Mills

The city of Martinez received a "B" grade in rankings issued Wednesday in the American Lung Association's annual "State of Tobacco Control" report.

The report graded local governments in four key areas -- tobacco control and prevention spending, smoke-free air, cigarette tax and cessation coverage.

The report states the battle to reduce tobacco use in most states, including California, has "all but stalled."

Martinez received an "A" having a large range of smoke-free outdoors areas, a "B" for smoke-free housing options and "D" for efforts to reduce sales of tobacco products.

In Contra Costa County, one city (Richmond) received an "A" across the board, as did the unincorporated regions. Three cities received a "B," four cities got a "C," three cities earned a "D" and eight cities were tagged with an "F."

Overall, the lung association says the country must "renew its commitment to eliminate tobacco-caused death and disease."

“Despite great strides in reducing smoking rates in America, tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death and illness in the U.S.,” said Anita Lee, interim chief executive officer of the American Lung Association in California. “We must renew our commitment to stopping tobacco from robbing another generation of Americans of their health and future."

The reports notes California used to be a leader in tobacco control policies, but now the state is falling behind in these measures.

In this year's report, the number of California cities receiving an "A" rose while the number getting an "F" declined.

However, more than 60 percent of California's municipalities still received "F" grades.