RESEARCH PAPER

Marketing to the marginalised: tobacco industry targeting of the homeless and mentally ill

D E Apollonio, R E Malone

University of California, San Francisco, USA

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Ruth E Malone
RN, PhD, FAAN, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, 3333 California Street, Suite 455, UCSF Box 0612, San Francisco, CA 94143-0612; rmalone{at}itsa.ucsf.edu

Objectives: To describe the tobacco industry’s relationships with and influence on homeless and mentally ill smokers and organisations providing services to them.

Methods: Analysis of internal tobacco industry documents and journal articles.

Results: The tobacco industry has marketed cigarettes to the homeless and seriously mentally ill, part of its "downscale" market, and has developed relationships with homeless shelters and advocacy groups, gaining positive media coverage and political support.

Discussion: Tobacco control advocates and public health organisations should consider how to target programmes to homeless and seriously mentally ill individuals. Education of service providers about tobacco industry efforts to cultivate this market may help in reducing smoking in these populations.

Abbreviations: LCHV, Louisiana Coalition for Homeless Veterans; NCHV, National Coalition for Homeless Veterans; OSHA, Occupational Safety and Health Administration; PM, Philip Morris; RJR, RJ Reynolds; VFW, Veterans of Foreign Wars

Keywords: homelessness; mental illness; tobacco control

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