Urge legislators to pass smoke-free legislation

I recently had the wonderful opportunity to travel to Juneau on Tuesday, March 8 to support a smoke-free workplace for all Alaskans. I went with a group of advocates and concerned citizens to meet with Alaska State Legislators regarding SB1 and HB136, bills that will create a smoke-free workplace across the entire state. Today, laws, statutes and ordinances that prohibit smoking in the workplace only protect 50 percent of all Alaskans. Many cities, municipalities and Boroughs in Alaska have healthcare powers, enabling them to pass local legislation that creates and enforces a smoke-free work environment. However, there are many areas in the state that lack health care powers, including the Mat-Su Borough, and these places must rely solely on the state legislature for the creation of laws related to healthcare powers, such as the creation of a smoke-free workplace.

There is no longer any dispute directly linking smoking to disease, be it cancer, heart disease, lung disease or a myriad of other diseases directly linked to being causally related to smoking. The vast majority of Alaskans all recognize the harmful nature of smoking. Despite this knowledge, many Alaskans continue to smoke because of addiction to nicotine and to the habit of smoking itself. And just as with primary smoking, there is irrefutable data linking second-hand smoke to these same diseases. The difference between the two is that the first is an active choice and the other often is not. There are many reasons why people may feel compelled to expose themselves to second hand smoke despite a desire to the contrary. It might be the only job, or the best job, they can get. Who among us would turn down the only job we can find, or the best job we can find, the job we need to provide for our family, to buy food and medicine for our kids, because of second hand smoke? How about the up and coming musician, or one that is already established for that matter, that feels compelled to play gigs at local bars and restaurants that allow smoking?

We had musicians in our midst today that suffer from permanent lung damage from singing for years in smoke-filled venues. As another one of the attendees put it today, it is not about the right to smoke, but the right to not have to breathe in second-hand smoke. Yes, sometimes it is possible to vote with our feet, but this is, unfortunately, not always possible. No one should ever have to choose between their health and a good job.

The data regarding tobacco smoke and direct links to disease are clear. But what about e-cigarettes (eCigs)? There is a lot of confusion and misinformation regarding the heath detriments of eCigs. Many purveyors of eCigs, including retailers, manufactures, and even big tobacco companies, have launched concerted and coordinated campaigns to convince all of us that eCigs are safe, that they cannot and should not be compared to tobacco cigarettes. The data would say otherwise. There are many chemicals present in eCig vapor that are known carcinogens or small particulate irritants such as acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, benzene, toluene, propylene glycol and heavy metals such as lead, tin and nickel, along with silicate nanoparticles. Furthermore, there is no regulation on the concentration of nicotine in eCigs, with some formulations delivering doses many times higher per puff than traditional cigarettes. Second-hand vapor from eCigs is not safe and can harm those people in close proximity. eCigs must not be considered safe alternatives to smoking and must be included in a smoke-free workplace. The same is also true for marijuana, since marijuana smoke also contains carcinogens.

Smoking disproportionately affects those people that are economically disadvantaged with lower salary levels and those with lower levels of education.

Smoking exacerbates economic and health disparities since it costs real money to buy traditional cigarettes or eCigs, and translates into worse individual health and higher health care costs for smokers compared to non-smokers. This is indisputable. There is a reason why every life insurance application asks about tobacco use, because it is linked to higher rates of death in every age group. Any additional incentive to not smoke, or to smoke less, resulting in less people smoking, will result in a reduction in these economic and health disparities. Furthermore, any improvement in the health of our population will translate into money saved by the state on healthcare. In a time of fiscal and budget crises, we should look for every way possible to save the State of Alaska money, and every study ever done has demonstrated that prevention and reduction in smoking saves healthcare dollars.

Creating a smoke-free work environment for all Alaskans, thereby removing all non-smokers from unwanted second-hand smoke, effectively results in instantaneous smoking cessation for each person breathing in second-hand smoke.

We are not asking for a mandate to prohibit smoking, or telling anyone they cannot smoke. In this country, people have a right to make decisions for themselves. This includes the decision to smoke. We are only asking that those who choose to smoke take it outside so that those that choose not to smoke are not forced to breathe in secondhand smoke. The right to smoke in the workplace should not trump the right to not be forced breathe in second-hand smoke. For all of the above reasons, it is important for all Alaskans to support a statewide smoke-free workplace. We all favor and support personal liberties, and to paraphrase a quintessential quote on liberty and personal freedoms, the right of my fist to fly freely and uninhibited through the air ends at the beginning of your nose. This is a legal principle in our great country that values personal freedoms. A smoke-free workplace makes sure your nose remains untouched. Please call or write your state representatives and let them know you support the passage of this important legislation.

Dr. John Yordy is a radiation oncologist at Valley Radiation Therapy Center in Palmer.