And in 1995, the latest year for which figures were available, smoking cost the state $328 million in medical payments and lost time on the job.
But now Hawaii has joined the legal offensive started by 19 other states to recoup the millions spent on health-care for those who suffer and die from tobacco-induced diseases such as cancer.
The state's lawsuit was filed against leading cigarette conglomerates and their research and public relations arms.
"The health costs and social costs of tobacco has truly been widespread and devastating," Gov. Ben Cayetano said yesterday. "Smoke-related diseases kill more people in Hawaii every year than AIDS, suicides, alcohol and murders all combined."
Dr. Elizabeth Tam, an associate professor at the University of Hawaii medical school, quantified the costs of cigarette smoking in 1995 in the isles this way: $159 million in medical bills paid by taxpayers through Medicaid and Medicare programs plus $169 million in lost productivity because of absenteeism.
In a half-inch-thick lawsuit filed yesterday, state Attorney General Margery Bronster claims the tobacco giants knew for years about the dangers of cigarettes and conspired to keep the information from the public, endangering thousands of isle residents.
The suit doesn't give a specific amount that the state is seeking. But the state can seek to recover its tobacco-related medical costs as well as three times that amount in damages, Bronster said.
Honolulu attorneys William McCorriston and Mark Bennett, who on behalf of the tobacco industry sought to bar the state from filing its lawsuit, were out of town yesterday and could not be reached for comment.
In the past, tobacco industry representatives have denied similar allegations.
The state's lawsuit takes on added significance because the tobacco industry is now allegedly targeting a younger crowd, Bronster said.
Honolulu attorney Gary Galiher, who will lead the state's attack on the tobacco industry, said Joe Camel was created by the industry's advertising minds specifically to lure more youths into becoming habitual smokers.
Therefore, Joe Camel should be banned from cigarette advertising, he said.
Galiher and attorney Ronald Motley of Charleston, S.C., have been contracted by the state to handle the case.
If the state wins its lawsuit, Galiher and Motley will get 20 percent of whatever is awarded. If Hawaii loses, the state will pay Galiher's and Motley's expenses.
While Hawaii is ready to take on the tobacco companies, Ohio has retreated, concluding that court costs and lawyers fees will be too high.
Bronster said that the tobacco companies conspired to keep nicotine levels high "to keep smokers hooked" and that they aimed deceptive ads at children.
"The tobacco companies cannot continue to reap huge profits by misleading the public and targeting our kids," Bronster said.
Gov. Cayetano added: "We simply cannot stand idle as more of our teen-agers begin smoking at 15. In addition to this lawsuit, my administration is asking the Legislature to increase the cigarette excise tax from 3 cents to 5 cents per cigarette, enhance tobacco-related disease prevention and increase public awareness against the hazards of smoking."
The 40 percent increase in the cigarette tax is expected to provide the state an additional $5 million a year in revenue. A similar bill died in the Legislature last year, but Cayetano has high hopes that this year's measure will past.
One anti-smoking measure not cited by Cayetano but being pushed by Senate Health Co-Chairman Andrew Levin (D, Volcano) would make the entrances around buildings smoke-free zones. Presently, smokers tend to congregate outside doorways, forcing people to breathe a wall of smoke to enter the building.
Levin's bill would require smokers to stay an as-yet-unspecified distance from building entrances.