New Report Shows Tobacco Control Policies Have Lesser Impact for Low SES Women A new report indicates that tobacco control policies put in place to protect the public from secondhand smoke exposure may not have an impact on women and girls of low socio-economic status (SES). The report, Tobacco Control Policies: Do They Make a Difference for Low SES Women and Girls?, a special supplement to the September 2006 Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, shows that women who work in pink-collar jobs and adult women who have not completed a high school education are less likely to have smoke-free homes, compared to women who work in white-collar jobs and those who have a college education, respectively. While some tobacco-control policies, such as pricing, have moderate effects on reducing smoking among low-SES women and girls, efforts such as smoke-free workplace policies do not always have the desired public health effect when it comes to this group of women and girls. According to the report, linking housing, welfare, childcare, training and economic policies and programs to tobacco policy are critical to achieve the desired effect on the health of girls and women of low socio-economic status.