RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina is the third cheapest state in the country for smokers - but the habit comes at a cost. That's according to a report from survey giant WalletHub.

The analysis - "The Real Cost of Smoking by State" - estimates the habit comes with a $1.1 million price tag over a smoker's lifetime.

Comparatively, New Yorkers pay more than double, but analyst Jill Gonzalez says while the Tar Heel State is among the cheapest for smokers, it costs in the long run.

"Either way, you're looking at over $1 million lost essentially over the course of a lifetime, so it's definitely cheaper to be a nonsmoker in every state," she explains.

In addition to the cost of the habit itself, smokers pay more than $141,000 for related health care and lose almost $196,000 in wages. According to the Centers for Disease Control, almost 22 percent of adults smoke in North Carolina. In 2009, the most recent data available, more than half of adult smokers made an attempt to quit.

Gonzalez says studies like this one are important to understanding the cost to the larger community.

"Obviously, there's an increase in insurance premiums when you're a smoker," she says. "We look at income loss per smoker, and a lot of that is due to people seeing smokers go on breaks more; that leads to smaller raises, lost promotions, et cetera."

One piece of positive news regarding smoking trends: CDC data released in 2017 showed that teen rates of smoking have hit an all-time low. Between 2011 and 2016, smoking declined among middle- and high-school students.

The state Department of Health offers free help to people wishing to quit - the number for help is 1-800-QUIT-NOW.


get more stories like this via email

Sudden cardiac arrest claims the lives of about 250 Michigan children and young adults each year. Legislation signed into law over the weekend aims to reduce that number. The new state law will require all public high school coaches to become CPR and AED certified.

Alexander Bowerson, now a freshman at the University of Michigan, is excited about it. During his senior year at Memphis High School, he says he would have died during wrestling practice had it not been for the quick thinking of a cheerleading coach who was also a nurse, and the defibrillator or AED that was available onsite.

"She knew exactly what to do," he said. "She realized it was cardiac right away, got an AED on me, took one shock and within 15 minutes after my first symptoms, was when I remember regaining full consciousness."

House Bills 5527 and 5528 will also require K-through-12 schools to establish a cardiac emergency response team, and do annual reviews of their emergency plan. The cost for CPR and AED certification is between $15 and $100 - and school districts will not be required to pay for the training.

Under the new law, the mandatory AED and CPR certifications must be obtained through the American Red Cross, American Heart Association, or an organization approved by the Michigan Department of Education. Bowerson said all it takes is a simple online search to see that there are a few kids in the Detroit area this year, who experienced cardiac emergencies.

"So now that it's required, I hope school boards take it seriously - and there's going to be a kid alive today, or whenever it happens, that wasn't going to be alive before, because of these bills," he said.

The new cardiac emergency response law goes into effect starting in the 2025-2026 school year.


get more stories like this via email

A new report reveals that investing in rural areas can improve essential resources for the people living there. Despite a significant rural population of 46 million in the United States, these regions receive only a minimal amount of grant funding. Back in 2012, the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust launched the Healthy Places North Carolina initiative and allocated $1-hundred million to 10 rural counties. The aim was to improve resource accessibility, and after a decade, their impact report reveals significant progress in areas such as healthy food, recreation and health-care resources.

Adam Linker, vice president for programs with the Reynolds trust, said the key to empowering these communities hinges on close collaboration with the residents themselves.

"The people who know the problems the best are the people who are closest to the issues in the community, and so you have to invest in those leaders, in those organizations so that they can lead the change efforts themselves," he said.

Linker emphasized the power of community-driven solutions for real, lasting change. The report echoes this sentiment, highlighting nearly 600 grants distributed to 61 local organizations across eastern and central North Carolina. Their efforts are making a difference, from setting up addiction recovery centers to improving health-care access.

One community reaping the benefits firsthand is West Marion in McDowell County. Linker pointed to the significance of the West Marion Community Forum, the sole Black-led nonprofit in the county. Historically underserved, Linker notes its pivotal role in creating initiatives such as free public transportation, establishing a thriving community garden and expanding access to vital resources.

"Their community, West Marion, that's predominantly African-American, was at one time they talked about the last that gets snow removal, and through their work of getting to know the city leaders, they're now the first to get snow removal. The city has started paying a lot of attention to what the community has to say," Linker said.

Kristen Burwell Naney, director of learning and impact with the Reynolds trust, believes the last decade has shown that it's not only important for funders to build up community organizations but to also change the way they think about success. She says this work requires a long-term strategy.

"So rather than expecting to see quick changes in population health outcomes, we found that you need to focus on things like detection of changes in networks, relationships, power and problem solving within a community, " she explained.

The report highlights key lessons for funders who want to shift conditions that produce inequality to drive change. Naney explained one important take-away to understand is that differences in organizations' abilities are often due to unequal access to financial and capacity building resources. The report suggests that funders have an opportunity to address these imbalances by offering more targeted support to groups that have historically been underfunded or excluded.

Birth doulas assist new moms with the stress, uncertainty and anxiety of childbirth. Another type of doula offers similar support - to those who are dying. Death doulas, or end-of-life specialists, give spiritual and emotional support to people nearing death in a non-medical setting, and to their families after the transition. The word 'doula' comes from the Greek word doule', meaning 'female helper.'

Joy Kahn Harter, a mental health counselor for Anchored Passages in Bloomington, specializes in grief and loss. She encourages open dialogue about what is often an uneasy subject to discuss.

"It is truly educating, advocating and connecting people to either present or future resources that will serve them, and underscoring the choices that people do, in fact, have - that many people don't realize that they have," she said.

Harter added one request she has received is with planning an advance directive - instructions a person can leave behind about their funeral service or cremation, what to do with a pet, or help writing a loving message to family and friends. In 2021, there were about 1,000 per 100,000 residents, with the average mortality at age 76.

Death, or what is sometimes called 'the other side,' can produce feelings of fear, or a sense of denial - especially if a terminal illness has been diagnosed.

Abby Vincent, a death doula with Joy's House in Indianapolis, said some people really 'lean into' the conversation - and others shy away from it.

"And I think it takes somebody who is comfortable with the topic themselves; takes somebody who's a good listener - that is so much a part of it - and is able to hold compassion and space for some of those hard conversations that need to happen. Because there are some beautiful moments that happen during the dying process," she explained.

Training to become a death doula happens in workshops, with required reading and work-study assignments. Since it is not a federally recognized field, insurance companies don't cover these services. Vincent said she relies on word of mouth and invitations from churches and community groups hosting end-of-life meetings as educational opportunities about the death doula industry.