In this episode, we are joined by Ramsey King, Health Policy Coordinator for the SOL Project, and Rosendo Iniguez, Program Manager for the Latino Coordinating Center. Ramsey and Rosendo explain the social determinants of health as it relates to tobacco control efforts, and why it needs to be incorporated into program development and implementation. They speak from experience as not only public health practitioners, but leaders in the African American and Latino communities.

About ASH
ASH has been fighting tobacco since 1967. Our longevity is not necessarily something to celebrate – “mission accomplished” would mean going out of business, joyfully. Like most tobacco control organizations, ASH’s vision is a world free from tobacco-caused death and disease. But also like most tobacco control organizations, our campaigns sought to mitigate the epidemic, not end it. For ASH, that changed about five years ago.

The catalyst for the change at ASH was the adoption of a human rights-based approach to the tobacco epidemic. Analyzing the commercialization of tobacco products through that lens leads to an obvious conclusion: this stuff must be removed from the market.

The idea got a huge boost when the State of California decided to put its weight behind a true tobacco endgame campaign. This represents a paradigm shift in public health. California and its allies are no longer interested in just “controlling” tobacco. They’re in it to end it.

Learn more about ASH CA at endtobaccoca.ash.org

The music in this episode is provided by Free Sound FX.
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