Contact

Candy Sims, Public Information Officer, Florida Department of Health in Broward County, (954) 467-4784 – candy.sims@flhealth.gov

Yvonne Lopez, Community Relations Director, City of Coconut Creek, (954) 973-6722 - ylopez@coconutcreek.net

Fort Lauderdale, FL – The City of Coconut Creek is the first municipality in Broward County to be awarded the Silver Level Worksite Wellness Award by the Florida Tobacco Cessation Alliance (FTCA). The FTCA Worksite Wellness Award was established as a way to recognize and set a standard for businesses that are providing comprehensive tobacco cessation services for their employees.

There are two levels that can be earned, Silver or Gold and any employer in the state of Florida can apply for this award on behalf of their organization. The City of Coconut Creek is a worksite with approximately 380 employees that became a tobacco free worksite in 2014. The City partnered with Tobacco Free Florida and Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) to offer free tobacco cessation resources to help their employees quit tobacco.

Free assistance is available to businesses creating or updating a tobacco control policy to exclude electronic cigarettes and other newer devices in the workplace. Broward County businesses are encouraged to support quit attempts being made by their employees by hosting group quit sessions at the workplace. Employees who make a decision to quit tobacco together can reinforce each other and increase the likelihood of staying quit while at the workplace.

Tobacco Free Florida’s new Quit Your Way program makes it easier than ever for tobacco users to access free tools and services to help them quit. For more information to quit tobacco or help a loved one quit, visit www.tobaccofreeflorida.com/county/broward.

Pictured Above

Left to right: Vice Mayor Joshua Rydell, Commissioner Sandra Welch, Commissioner Mikkie Belvedere, Human Resources Specialist Justin Weinberg, Director of Health Promotions at the American Lung Association Andrew Cuddihy, Mayor Becky Tooley, Human Resources & Risk Management Director Pamela Kershaw, Purchasing Analyst Stacy Lysengen, Commissioner Lou Sarbone.

About the City of Coconut Creek

The City of Coconut Creek is a full-service municipality located within the northern central portion of Broward County, the second most populated county in the State. The City was created in 1967 by the Legislature of the State of Florida and is approximately 12 square miles. Coconut Creek is located just north of Fort Lauderdale, and abuts unincorporated Palm Beach County to the north. In 2017 the City was ranked in the “Top 5 Best Places to Live in Broward County” and “Top 5 Best Places to Raise a Family in Broward County” by Niche, a community ratings website. The City is the 15^th most populated amongst the 31 municipalities in the County with an estimated population of 57,395.

About the Florida Department of Health

The department, nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, works to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts.

Follow us on Twitter at @HealthyFla and on Facebook. For more information about the Florida Department of Health please visit www.FloridaHealth.gov.

About Tobacco Free Florida

The department’s Tobacco Free Florida campaign is a statewide cessation and prevention campaign funded by Florida’s tobacco settlement fund. Since the program began in 2007, more than 188,000Floridians have successfully quit using one of Tobacco Free Florida's free tools and services. There are now approximately 451,000 fewer adult smokers in Florida than there was 10 years ago, and the state has saved $17.7 billion in health care costs. To learn more about Tobacco Free Florida’s Quit Your Way services, visit www.tobaccofreeflorida.com or follow the campaign on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TobaccoFreeFlorida or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/tobaccofreefla.

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