Celeste Clark is the executive director of the Raymond Coalition for Youth.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

This legislative session has raised some concerns that not enough people understand that the best way to save money is to prevent the problem from ever even happening. We must emphasize this important life lesson to save existing prevention efforts and continue supporting our youth.

We have all heard about budget cuts proposed by the New Hampshire House of Representatives to save money, but we must ask: at what cost?

Primary health prevention shows, on the very low end, that every dollar invested in prevention saves, on average, $6 in health care costs. When we expand that to substance misuse prevention efforts, the estimated cost savings climbs to as high as $12 to $18 for every dollar spent on providing information and awareness on the dangers of drugs and alcohol to children and teens.

New Hampshire prevention community coalitions and public health networks have been strategically working to lower the rates of substance misuse among our youth. It has taken time to build a strong network with qualified individuals who understand the process and how to effectively make change. The very foundation of this work and the infrastructure that helps keep it moving forward are in danger in many ways in our state at the moment.

First, let’s talk about HB446, a bill that would make the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which is administered to youth every two years and collects vitally important information, an opt-in survey. This means parents or guardians would have to sign a permission form for their child to participate in this survey.

Currently, there is a ten-day period when parents and guardians are made aware of the survey, given time to review it and are able to choose to opt their child out of taking the survey for any reason. To be clear, the information collected in the survey is completely anonymous and covers topics our youth are well-versed in, curious about and already talking about — subjects their adults might find uncomfortable to talk about, like drug use, mental health and sex.

The data collected in these surveys allows community coalitions to come together to support youth growing up in their areas, to design messaging and programming to help support our youth in making healthy choices and to provide them with knowledge of where to go for help and support.

The data allows us to reach out to our partners across the state and share information and resources about how to address those needs, once they’ve been identified. This leads us to our next concern: the budget.

The New Hampshire Liquor Commission’s Division of Enforcement is on the list of cuts in the current proposed budget. NHLE does so much behind-the-scenes work to help with prevention, and on a community-facing level, they are the people we can call if we have a report of an establishment selling alcohol or tobacco to an underage buyer. They help us raise awareness that the legal age to purchase alcohol and tobacco is 21, and they are the ones who enforce these laws if they are broken.

The Tobacco Prevention and Cessation Program is also on the line to be cut. This department provides updated information and awareness resources for local community youth groups, schools and organizations to share and raise awareness about the current threats around nicotine products and their harmful effects on teens and adults alike. They also provide access to ways to quit for those who may be ready to take that next step towards a healthier lifestyle, such as 1-800-quit-now and My Life My Quit for teens.

The loss of even one of these tools could drastically change the landscape of prevention work in New Hampshire. All three are vital tools in our prevention toolbox to help keep our kids and communities safe from the unknown harms that can come with substance misuse at a young age.

If you care about our young people, or you care about a budget that invests the state’s money wisely, makes a difference and saves you money in the future, please speak up.

The people who are invested in keeping kids, communities and roads safe in New Hampshire want to continue the great work they do to save lives and limit lifelong addiction. Please reach out to your senator and let them know these are important issues that you care about.