The tobacco prevention and cessation money in the plan will be allocated on a per-capita basis so money flows to where Arkansans live. And even though the educational and research programs will be centered in cities with higher education institutions, these programs will benefit all Arkansans. Meetings were held across the state to obtain input from legislators, advocacy group representatives and others. The equation is simple. Research opportunities attract good teachers to our medical school.
Good teachers make for better doctors.
And better doctors will lead to a healthier Arkansas. You may not realize it, but Arkansas already leads the world in several areas of research. Complex research projects on various forms of cancer, cardiovascular disease and lung disease are being conducted in our state. Additional research dollars will keep us on the cutting edge and also allow us to better capitalize on the farm sector of our economy since one of the trends in medical research is toward agricultural-based medicines. This money, in turn, will attract additional grants from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and other sources.