Fighting Commercial Tobacco. Together.
Washington Breathes is a statewide coalition of organizations and individuals working to eliminate the harmful use of commercial tobacco and other nicotine products.
Improving Health In All Communities
Our Top Priorities
Obtain sustainable funding to support comprehensive commercial tobacco education, prevention, and treatment programs throughout the state.
Ensure effective, culturally and linguistically appropriate nicotine cessation strategies and support are available and provided to all who seek it – including youth.
Improve understanding of the disproportionate impact of commercial tobacco products on specific communities and tailor support services/messaging to the specific needs of that community.
Support policies, programs, and funding that educate youth on the harms of commercial tobacco use and support them in cessation efforts, working towards a future nicotine-free generation.
Educate on the harms of flavors - including menthol - and support policies that expand flavor restrictions and bans to reduce initiation and disparities.
Explain the harmful impacts of preemption and the benefits of local regulations that reflect community interests and solve local problems caused by sales and marketing of commercial tobacco products.
The Tobacco Industry Spends About $85 Million Each Year on Marketing in WA State Alone
That's more than 20 times Washington's state investment of about $4 million in fiscal year 2024 for prevention strategies and cessation programs to reduce smoking and vaping.
STAY UP-TO-DATE
Featured Issues
Nicotine pouch sales continue to rise overall
From January 2023 to August 2025, overall sales of nicotine pouches increased 250% in the U.S. Nicotine pouches contain nicotine (often in large amounts) and other chemicals. Most of these pouches are flavored, with mint flavor in about 60% of products sold. The FDA has approved only 20 nicotine pouch products for sale in the U.S., but many other products and brands are being sold illegally.
California flavored tobacco ban reduced e-cigarette and cigarette sales
A study of retail scanner data by the CDC Foundation, Truth Initiative, and University of Southern California published in the American Journal of Public Health looked at the sales impact of California's law prohibiting the sale of flavored commercial tobacco products. They found a significant drop in CA sales during the first 18 months after the policy was implemented, with e-cigarette sales declining by 37% and cigarette sales declining by 10.6%.
What's in the vapor?
E-cigarettes have been sold in the U.S. for years, yet some of their ingredients still remain a mystery. Recent research uncovered a new one – Neotame, which is an extremely sweet and mostly unknown additive in many e-cigarettes. Neotame is 7,000 to 13,000 times sweeter than table sugar. Neotame is not well studied, and has not been tested for inhalation toxicity.
104,000
youth will die prematurely from smoking
8,300
deaths from smoking each year
27%
of cancer deaths are due to smoking
$3.26 BN
in annual health care expenditures directly caused by commercial tobacco use
39th
WA's FY 2024 national rank for state investment in nicotine prevention & cessation
November 18th
Updates on E-Cigarette Registry Laws