Mat-Su Borough needs to go smoke-free

Public health scored a huge victory in Haines in October, when voters there passed an ordinance that prohibits smoking in all enclosed workplaces and public places, including restaurants and bars. The ordinance will protect workers and the public from the serious health hazards of secondhand smoke.

People in six other Alaska communities enjoy that same protection, thanks to smoke-free ordinances passed in recent years in Anchorage, Juneau, Bethel, Sitka, Klawock and Unalaska. It’s time to extend that protection to the Mat-Su Valley.

Secondhand smoke kills. It contains at least 250 toxic chemicals, including more than 50 known to cause cancer. It is proven to cause lung cancer, heart disease, chronic asthma, bronchitis and sudden infant death syndrome.

Even brief exposure is harmful, according to a 2006 report by U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona, who said, “The debate is over. The science is clear: Secondhand smoke is not a mere annoyance, but a serious health hazard that causes premature death and disease in children and nonsmoking adults.”

Secondhand smoke is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States, claiming an estimated 50,000 American lives each year. In Alaska, as many as 120 nonsmokers die from secondhand-smoke-related illnesses each year.

That’s more than the number of people killed annually in motor vehicle accidents and about three times the number of deaths caused by homicide.

Smoke-free policies can help stem that tide.

They not only protect workers and the public from secondhand smoke, but they often lead to a reduction in smoking rates as well.

In fact, studies show that states and communities with comprehensive tobacco control policies, such as strong clean indoor air ordinances and high tobacco taxes, have the lowest smoking rates, particularly among youth. New York, for example, which has some of the highest tobacco taxes and stiffest smoking restrictions in the nation, has a high school smoking rate of 13.8 percent, according to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids — far below the national average of 20 percent.

And smoke-free laws are good for business. Study after study in communities across the nation show that smoking restrictions either have no impact or a positive impact on the economic health of restaurants and bars.

In fact, going 100 percent smoke-free not only draws new customers; it reduces maintenance costs, medical costs and legal liability as well.

Nearly 80 percent of the Valley’s workforce is already protected by smoke-free workplace policies, according to the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services. It’s time we as a community come together to ensure protection for the remaining 20 percent, including those who work in restaurants and bars.

About 28 percent of Mat-Su residents smoke. That’s their right. But the remaining 72 percent have the right to breathe smoke-free air in public places. And everyone deserves the right to breathe smoke-free air at work.

Momentum for smoke-free workplace laws is growing across the country and around the world.

Hundreds of communities and as many as 27 states and 13 countries have passed strong smoke-free laws that include restaurants and bars.

It’s time the Mat-Su Valley joins in.

Jane Conard is nurse manager at Mat-Su Public Health Center.