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Connor Burge, The Times State Rep. Julie Olthoff, R-Crown Point, is leading a Statehouse effort to reduce Hoosier smoking rates by seeking to increase Indiana’s cigarette tax by $1 per pack. Olthoff told the House Public Health Committee on Monday that 1 in 5 Indiana adults are smokers, along with 23% of high school students, and they’re disproportionately driving up health care costs and cancer rates in the state, while reducing worker productivity. Our desire is to drive a new wave of smoking cessation and prevention, especially for our Indiana youth, Olthoff said. The Republican explained the $1 per pack cigarette tax hike in House Bill 1434 is high enough to discourage younger Hoosiers from continuing or taking up the habit, and likewise should spur many adult smokers to consider scaling back or quitting smoking altogether.

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