The Importance of Continued OSH Funding, Tobacco Control Programs, and State Quitlines

The National Coalition for LGBTQ Health is deeply concerned about the ongoing dismantling of public health infrastructure—most recently seen in the federal government’s failure to release FY25 funding for the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health (OSH), and in the proposal to eliminate the entire Chronic Disease Center in the FY26 budget. These cuts threaten the backbone of tobacco prevention in this country, including state Quitlines and national public health campaigns that LGBTQ+ people count on. In some states, those lifelines are already disappearing. Quitline counselors are being laid off. Phone lines are going dark. These aren’t just budget line items—they’re services people depend on.

Commercial tobacco is still one of the top causes of preventable death in LGBTQ+ communities. According to the Coalition’s national 2024 State of LGBTQ Health™ survey, fewer than one in three LGBTQ-focused health centers offer crisis support or hotlines. Fewer than one in five provide medication-assisted treatment. With so few affirming services out there, pulling the plug on things like state Quitlines or the 988 LGBTQ+ crisis line or leaves people with nowhere to turn—especially those already dealing with stigma, chronic illness, or substance use. 

We can’t discreetly separate health from behavioral health. And we can’t pretend this isn’t a coordinated step backward. Undoing OSH and its core functions undercuts decades of progress and shifts the burden to already-stretched community organizations and health systems. The Coalition calls for the immediate release of FY25 OSH funds and the restoration of full support for tobacco control programs in the FY26 process. Protect the systems that make equity possible.