Nevada Sen. Harry Reid met last week with Nevada youth in the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Nevada’s youth advocates were Spencer Flanders of Carson City, Breanna Taylor of Minden, Catia Villanueva and Michelle Tostes of Las Vegas.
The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids is a nonprofit organization created in 1996 with the goal of reducing tobacco use.
The Campaign is one of the nation's largest non-governmental initiatives ever launched to protect children from tobacco addiction and exposure to secondhand smoke. It is estimated that 90 percent of all adult smokers begin smoking as teenagers. As such, the Campaign works with youth to empower them as advocates against smoking.
“I appreciate the leadership and extraordinary work of these youth advocates to encourage their peers to remain tobacco free. Every year, tobacco is responsible over 400,000 deaths in the United States and $100 billion in medical bills. That is why I share their strong support for policies to reduce tobacco use, including funding for the Prevention and Public Health Fund that was created by the Affordable Care Act," said Reid. "Thanks to this new law, Nevada has received more than $3.8 million to date to reduce tobacco use, which is the leading cause of preventable death in Nevada.”
In the photo, From left to right: Michelle Tostes of Las Vegas, Catia Villanueva of Las Vegas, Breanna Taylor of Minden, and Spencer Flanders of Carson City meet with Senator Reid to discuss tobacco free youth initiatives in Nevada.