The horrors of cuts

To the editor:

Included among the governor's budget recommendations is the elimination of funding for Nevada's tobacco prevention and cessation programs. Our legislators must be made aware of the devastating consequences if this occurs.

The youth smoking rate has dropped by 48 percent and the adult rate by 30 percent since the creation of these programs, and Nevada is no longer considered the "smokiest" state in the nation. Once tobacco prevention funding is eliminated or significantly reduced, smoking rates quickly rise, resulting in a dramatic reversal of positive trends. These cuts will lead to increased smoking rates and increased medical costs associated with the diseases that result from tobacco use.

The annual health care costs in Nevada directly caused by smoking are $565 million a year. Additionally, the elimination of tobacco prevention funding would result in tremendous job loss within Nevada.

An alternative to these cuts would be an increase in the state tobacco tax. An increase of $1 per pack would raise $78.8 million in new annual revenue to help close the state's budget shortfall, while saving lives. This tax could prevent 18,700 children from smoking, spur 14,000 current smokers to quit, save 9,600 residents from premature, smoking-caused death and save $460.3 million in health care costs.

Nancy L. York

HENDERSON

The writer is president of the Nevada Tobacco Prevention Coalition.

Tuition hikes

To the editor:

I read with amusement the recent story about the UNLV students skipping class to protest any cuts in the higher education budget.

I would like to offer the students and Gov. Jim Gibbons a solution: Raise tuition at the colleges and universities to cover the gap between the available money and that needed to prevent cuts. Maybe the tuition increases could be progressive. You know, like the tax rates. Seniors who have more to lose if faculty are cut would pay a higher tuition than a new freshman. That should make everyone happy.

There would be no cuts and those who have the most to gain would shoulder the greatest part of the burden.

You know the scary thing about this idea? The Democrats probably like it.

Michael Dunegan

LAS VEGAS