Bloomberg School to Receive Additional Funds to Fight Global Tobacco Use

The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is one of five entities that will receive new funding in support of the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use. Today, philanthropist and New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced that he will commit an additional $220 million to fight tobacco use around the world to stem the growing global public health crisis. In total, Bloomberg Philanthropies has committed more than $600 million to fight global tobacco use.

The additional funding will support tobacco control efforts in low- and middle-income countries where 80 percent of the world’s smokers live.

The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is one of five partner organizations funded by the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use. Through its Institute for Global Tobacco Control, the Bloomberg School is the academic arm of the initiative, conducting research, evaluation and capacity building to support the passage, implementation and enforcement of tobacco control policies and interventions.

"I applaud Mayor Bloomberg’s continued support and commitment to tobacco control,” said Joanna Cohen, PhD, MHSc, director of the Institute for Global Tobacco Control at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “The Bloomberg Initiative has been an essential stimulus for fostering the implementation of effective tobacco control interventions, and these new resources will support important work that will save millions of lives in the coming years."

“Mike Bloomberg continues to demonstrate his commitment to tackling the world’s most pressing public health issues,” said Michael J. Klag, MD, MPH, dean of the Bloomberg School of Public Health. “Improving health and saving lives are what we strive to do as a school and this financial support will help to further our research and work in tobacco control and prevention.

Tobacco use is the leading global cause of preventable death — killing almost six million people annually. The Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use is focused on reducing the public health impact of tobacco use globally, by implementing proven tobacco control policies in low- and middle-income countries where 80 percent of tobacco-related deaths occur. In its first five years, the initiative’s partners have supported governments and civil society groups by fostering the implementation of smoke-free legislation and other effective tobacco control policies.

Media contact: Tim Parsons, director of Public Affairs, at 410-955-7619 or tmparson@jhsph.edu.