Small tobacco companies were excluded from the legislative actions that required Big Tobacco to pay a 45-cent-per-pack assessment into the Lawton Chiles Trust Fund. 
Closing that loophole could raise an estimated $89-million annually for Florida, enough to fund Healthy Start services to pregnant women and their babies. Florida must maintain existing Healthy Start services and expand access to prenatal services. The state reported more than 1,680 infant deaths and 20,767 low birth-weight babies in 2007.
Read the letter from the Healthy Start Coalitions to Governor Crist requesting the closing of the loophole here.
This Front Burner was brought to you by:
Roy Miller, President
Amanda Ostrander, Web Administrator