Science, advocacy and health policy: lessons from the New Zealand tobacco wars.
The New Zealand Smoke-Free Environments Act was passed in August 1990 and is a central component of a comprehensive tobacco control policy. The passage of the Act was preceded by a long campaign. The essential components of this campaign were: international scientific evidence and the estimates of tobacco-caused mortality in New Zealand; activists groups supported by established health charities and the health professions; a sympathetic Health Department bureaucracy; a committed and powerful Minister of Health; and a relatively weak industry. The legislation passed despite adverse timing, the absence of bipartisan political support, and the pressure of industry-supported sports lobby groups. The campaign provides a model for other health issues in New Zealand and lessons for the tobacco wars elsewhere.
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D006291:Health Policy / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D006801:Humans; D007221:Industry; D009520:New Zealand; D010947:Plants, Toxic; D011057:Politics; D012907:Smoking / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D014026:Nicotiana