Illinois Gets Mixed Reviews For Efforts In Fighting Cancer
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The American Cancer Society is out with its annual report, showing how states are doing in the fight to prevent cancer.
As WBBM Newsradio's Regine Schlesinger reports, Illinois gets mixed reviews.
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"We're certainly not the worst but we could do a lot to improve our ranking," said the American Cancer Society's Heather Eagleton.
Eagleton says the study measured states on seven issues. Illinois met just four of the seven benchmarks.
She says the state should provide more money for anti-smoking programs.
"We've done our job in increasing the cigarette tax to encourage people to quit," she said. "Now we need to provide the funding to help people quit."
For the first time, the study ranked states on laws regulating tanning salons and she says Illinois fell short.
"We could also then of course, look at doing a statewide ban on teen use of indoor tanning beds," she said.
Nationwide, the report finds nearly two thirds of states falling short in the battle against cancer. Only two states--Delaware and Vermont--get high marks.
