DC Calls It Quits! week: September 21-25, 2015
DC Tobacco Free Coalition is proud to join the DC Department of Health and local partners to sponsor DC Calls It Quits! Week. Together, we will inspire, equip and support DC residents to quit smoking. To learn about local events happening during DC Calls It Quits Week!, visit our community calendar. We invite any group hosting a quit event during the week to post to the calendar.
PRESS RELEASE
Date: September 17, 2015
Contact: Katie Morgan| (202) 470-‐5362| katiemorgan@rational360.com
DC Tobacco Free Coalition, DC Department of Health and more than 40 local partners to host DC Calls It Quits! Week
Public Health Campaign will inform DC residents about the importance of smoking cessation
WASHINGTON, DC – During the week of Sept. 21-‐25, 2015, theDC Tobacco Free Coalition and theDC Department of Health will partner with more than 40 local organizations in the District of Columbia to sponsor DC Calls It Quits! Week, a public awareness campaign aimed at informing residents about the importance of quitting smoking.
“Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the U.S., and smoking kills more than 700 District of Columbia residents each year, as well as leads to a significant decline in quality of life,” says Charles Debnam, Chair of the DC Tobacco Free Coalition. “More than 14 percent of adults in Washington, DC are smokers. Our main goal is to educate and inform residents about the resources available to help them quit. Studies have shown that calls to local Quitlines increase by 50 percent immediately following a successful public awareness campaign, which is why we have teamed up with the DC Department of Health and more than 40 supporting partners to make DC Calls It Quits! Week a truly impactful event that will reach every part of the city.”
DC Calls It Quits! Week begins with an official kick-‐off press conference on Monday, Sept. 21, at 11:00am ET, where local residents, advocates and campaign partners will come together to hear speakers from local government, the DC Department of Health, hospitals and patient-‐focused health organizations discuss why smoking cessation is such an important issue for the city. The campaign will conclude on Friday, Sept. 25, with an educational summit at Howard University. To learn more about all community events taking place during DC Calls It Quits! Week, please visit the event
calendar here.
WHAT: DC Calls It Quits! Week Official Press Conference
WHEN: Monday, Sept. 21, 2015, at 11:00am ET
WHERE: Old City Council Chambers One Judiciary Square
441 4th Street, NW
First Floor South
WHO: Dr. LaQuandra Nesbitt, Director of the DC Department of Health; Dr. Elmer Huerta, Director of the Cancer Preventorium, a division of the Washington Cancer Institute at MedStar Washington Hospital Center; Local Government and patient-‐focused organizations
“Nearly seven in ten adult smokers would like to quit smoking, and more than 61 percent of DC smokers have made an attempt to quit in the last year,” says Dr. LaQuandra Nesbitt, Director of the DC Department of Health. “Many District smokers are unaware of the smoking cessation treatments and services available to help them quit. I encourage all residents who smoke to call the DC Quitline – 1 (800) QUIT NOW (784-‐8669) – which provides smoking cessation services, including counseling sessions with certified tobacco treatment specialists, free nicotine patches and a local number for Spanish-speaking residents.”
You can also join the conversation on Twitter using#DCQuits.
About the DC Tobacco Free Coalition
The DC Tobacco Free Coalition (DCTFC) is an alliance of community-‐based and national public health organizations working together to educate the District of Columbia about the harmful effects of tobacco and secondhand smoke. The Coalition's mission is to improve health and protect lives in
the nation's capital, by decreasing tobacco use and exposure through education, advocacy and public policy.
