House kills funding for tobacco cessation program

The Iowa House killed funding for the state’s tobacco cessation programs Thursday, saving the state about $5.5 million.
The cut was part of a larger $1.47 billion appropriations Health and Human Services bill used to pay for a myriad of programs that help the indigent, the elderly, children, veterans and the sick. Some amendments to the bill had the agreement of everyone in the House such as one that created a Community Housing Revolving Loan Program to help service providers upgrade their facilities and one that transferred $60,000 to the Cherokee Mental Health Institute for children’s beds.