New partnerships taking flight
We are excited to partner in new ways with the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) to support MDH in working toward its vision for health equity in Minnesota, where all communities are thriving and all people have what they need to be healthy. After partnering with MDH from 2013 - 2021, Counter Tools is providing [More]
Updated Report: Tobacco Companies and Convenience Stores Partner to Hook Kids, Fight Life-Saving Policies
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids has released an updated version of the report Deadly Alliance: How Big Tobacco and Convenience Stores Partner to Hook Kids and Fight Life-Saving Policies in partnership with the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council (AATCLC), American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Center for Black Health [More]
Webinar: Environmental Scans for Alcohol Policy Change with the Alcohol Policy Resource Center
We are excited to announce a collaborative webinar with the Alcohol Policy Resource Center. The Environmental Scans for Alcohol Policy Change webinar will be on Wednesday, November 8th, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Eastern. Assessing your community is critical in identifying potential issues contributing to underage or excessive alcohol use. Completing a comprehensive assessment [More]
We’re partnering with North Carolina in new ways
We are excited to partner with the North Carolina Tobacco Prevention and Control Branch (TPCB) and two tobacco control regions of the state to address health equity through tobacco policy change! Counter Tools is providing training and technical assistance for tobacco prevention programs and community partners to strengthen their capacity to advance evidence-based tobacco prevention [More]
Webinar – Innovative Local Solutions in Public Health
We recently hosted a webinar with CADCA GHEA about local-level policy solutions in Maryland and California. These efforts advanced policies relating to alcohol and healthy food. We often see innovative policy solutions tested first at the local-level. In this webinar, you’ll learn about alcoholic beverage regulations in Montgomery County, the sole “control” jurisdiction in the [More]
Webinar – Using Local Momentum to Drive State and Federal Policy Change
This webinar featured leaders from the Tobacco 21 and smokefree air movements to discuss how tobacco control policy strategies at the local level helped drive policy change across the country. Assessing local policy change through case studies helps identify lessons learned and keys to success, which can help set the stage for state or national [More]
Webinar – Building the rationale for local policy change
We recently hosted a webinar with CADCA GHEA about why local-level policy efforts matter for for public health and shared strategies that have proven successful for local policy implementation. Local governments are on the front lines of adopting laws and policies that have the potential to improve health outcomes and reduce inequities. CADCA’s Geographic Health [More]
Protecting Local Authority to Adopt Local Solutions
Laws and policies adopted at the local level are tailored to their communities, improving health outcomes and reducing inequities. Local laws also complement state or federal policies and provide greater coverage for enforcement inspections of retailers. Preemption laws from a higher level of government can create challenges for local policy innovations and are a key consideration [More]
Webinar – Changing the Game Redux: An Updated Playbook for E-cigarette Regulation at the State and Local Level
Despite public health concerns about the prevalence of e-cigarette use – especially among youth and young adults – the U.S. e-cigarette market continues to thrive. Addressing this rapidly changing market requires coordinated and evidence-based policy at local, state, and federal levels. This webinar features experts in public health law, policy, and advocacy who will describe [More]
Tobacco Point of Sale Preemption Playbook
Local governments often lead the way in adopting laws and policies aimed at improving health outcomes and reducing inequities, including point-of-sale commercial tobacco control policies. However, state preemption can thwart local efforts to adopt laws and policies that protect public health and advance health equity. The Tobacco Point of Sale Preemption Playbook, a new resource [More]
Report: Surveying How the Tobacco Industry Markets Flavors in Five Midwestern Cities
A report from Counter Tools and Truth Initiative examines how flavored tobacco products are marketed and sold in 5 U.S. cities, with new data looking specifically at e-cigarette products. Download Materials Summary report: Surveying How the Tobacco Industry Markets Flavors in Five Midwestern Cities Full report and fSTARS form: Retail Store Assessments for Flavored Tobacco Products: [More]
Congrats to our partners on their 2021 accomplishments!
Despite the challenges that 2021 brought, our public health partners remained committed to building healthier, more equitable communities. We’d like to recognize our partners for the following accomplishments in 2021: Arizona Office of the Attorney General reinitiated tobacco enforcement inspections this year using the Tobacco Enforcement System (TES), created out of Arizona’s partnership with Counter [More]
Webinar with GHEA – Using Policy Surveillance Methods for K-12 Tobacco-free School Policies
We're excited to announce an upcoming webinar with CADCA's Geographic Health Equity Alliance. This webinar will review key takeaways found by the Geographic Surveillance Learning Collaborative on tobacco policy surveillance. The webinar is part of the Surveillance & Evaluation Webinar Series, which is hosted by the CDC Office on Smoking and Health (OSH). Date: Tuesday, [More]
We’re excited to partner with Community Advocates!
Counter Tools recently began a new partnership with Community Advocates Public Policy Institute, an organization based in Milwaukee, WI. We will be helping them assess tobacco and alcohol retailers in their community to understand how harmful products are being marketed and sold. Community Advocates’ primary mission is to ensure that low-income families and individuals in [More]
CDC awards $300 million in funding to community health workers across the U.S.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced the awardees for more than $300 million in funding to support community health worker (CHW) services. CHWs are frontline public health workers who are trusted members of the community they serve and support populations at high risk and those hit hardest by COVID-19. Funding will [More]
The Mobilization of Reality Check and Other Youth Groups: Fighting Tobacco Industry Lies
Our team was excited to participate again this year in Reality Check’s action and advocacy to combat the tobacco industry’s targeting of youth. This year a multi-week virtual event was held with training webinars, social media advocacy, and interactive activities geared towards youth culminating with the annual Altria shareholders meeting. Reality Check is a youth-led [More]
Webinar with GHEA on Cancer, Obesity and Place
GHEA partnered with Counter Tools to present “Cancer, Obesity and Place” on Friday, June 25, from 1-2 pm EDT. Research has clearly shown that obesity is a risk factor for a wide variety of negative health outcomes, including several types of cancer. It is no coincidence that we see geographic trends in obesity prevalence. This [More]
We’re thrilled to partner with New Jersey!
We’re thrilled to announce a new partnership with the New Jersey Prevention Network. Counter Tools will be providing training and technical assistance for tobacco prevention programs on point-of-sale tobacco work - sharing knowledge on tobacco industry tactics, milestones in public health prevention and control efforts, policy options, and case studies of successful policy. We’ll also [More]
Announcing the 2021 Geographic Surveillance Learning Collaborative
The Geographic Health Equity Alliance and Counter Tools are excited to announce the second annual Geographic Surveillance Learning Collaborative for National Comprehensive Cancer Control and National Tobacco Control Programs. In this learning collaborative, teams from six participating states will each work on a project designed to build competence in the areas of mapping policies (i.e., legal mapping) and communicating about geographic health disparities. Project Details [More]
Geographic Surveillance Learning Collaborative 2020 – Highlights from Tobacco Control Programs
The Geographic Health Equity Alliance (GHEA) and Counter Tools facilitated the inaugural Geographic Surveillance Learning Collaborative for National Tobacco Control Programs and National Comprehensive Cancer Control from May to September 2020. In order to participate, interested states were required to establish a three-person team consisting of a statewide representative from each of the following fields: (1) tobacco control, (2) comprehensive cancer control and [More]
