Health woes could lead to vice tax hikes

Seventy-two percent of North Carolinians favor increasing the state cigarette tax as a way to fund public health research, according to a poll released Tuesday.

Research!America, a nonprofit group focused on health issues, announced the results of its survey of 811 N.C. residents at a media and health forum held at the UNC Medical Biomolecular Research Building.

“Research matters,” said Karen Goraleski, director of Research!America’s Prevention Research Initiative. “Americans want research to succeed.”

Government funding for health-related research has failed to keep up with the inflation rates, which needs to change, she said.

The poll dealt with attitudes of North Carolinians toward health research.

The survey found that 63 percent of North Carolinians believe that too little is spent on public health research, and 78 percent favor increasing the sales tax for alcohol to fund such research.

Ninety-one percent think the state should use tobacco settlement money to fund research “to cure or prevent all disease.”

Cancer and heart disease were ranked the highest priorities for public health research, with 97 percent and 96 percent of North Carolinians, respectively, considering them a top or somewhat high priority.

The forum, titled “Making Healthy Headlines,” also included a panel of health reporters and medical researchers. The panelists discussed the relationship between research and journalism.

Dr. Robert Sandler, a UNC public health professor, said there is “a fundamental tension between media and science.”

He said it is the role of scientists to be patient, focus on the subtleties and avoid jumping to conclusions.

“Findings do not necessarily translate into a strong public health message,” he said.

Journalists on the panel spoke about their need to meet deadlines and translate the research findings into terms that can be understood by the general public. This can lead to frustration for both the reporter and the researcher.

“You want to be accurate and you want to be fair,” said Sarah Avery, a medical reporter for The (Raleigh) News and Observer. “We in the media need to be aware of the nuances.”

Carol Krucoff, founding editor of The Washington Post’s health section, was the keynote speaker and recounted her experiences as a health journalist and encouraged cooperation among journalists and researchers.

“I would argue that we fulfill similar roles and have the exact same goals,” Krucoff said.

Merrill Wolf, an employee of Family Health International who attended the event, said that the forum signified an important exchange of thoughts among scientists and journalists and that public health is a topic that needs to receive greater attention.

“There is certainly of lot of room for improvement.”

Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.