Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center will prohibit smoking on its campus beginning July 4, according to a DHMC press release. The implementation of the decision was delayed a year to allow for an adjustment period and to publicize resources to help people stop smoking. "DHMC is a health care institution, and our mission, vision and goals call for us to achieve the healthiest population possible, and to provide the best care to every patient, every time," John Butterfly, a cardiologist and executive medical director at DHMC who chaired the committee charged with implementing the new policy, said in the press release. "We simply can't live up to that mission if we don't send the message in the strongest possible terms that smoking and tobacco use is bad for you."
Vermont raised its tobacco tax by 20 cents today, increasing the tax per pack to $1.99, the Valley News reported on Monday. The increase is the second and final phase of a plan to help raise funds for the Catamount Health program, a new health insurance plan designed to restructure Vermont's health care system. The first phase of the program raised the tax by 60 cents per pack in 2006. New Hampshire residents may also see a 25-cent increase in taxes, which are currently at $1.08 per pack, in October if the current tax generates less than $48 million between July and October, according to the Valley News. Higher prices, however, could eventually cause the number of smokers to decrease, eliminating tobacco taxes as a promising funding source for the state, the Valley News said.
Colleges are increasingly using 529 plans, education saving plans for families' anticipated college costs, to help them recruit students, The Wall Street Journal reported on June 25. Many schools are now offering families who save money for higher education using these plans benefits ranging from tuition discounts to scholarships, the Journal said. The plans, which are available in most states, are named after the section of the IRS code that created them. Students entering college in fall 2007 who used 529 plans saved an average of $1,548 per year, according to the Journal.
