CDC Predicts Smoke-Free Nation

05.17.2011
HR & Safety

By 2020 or sooner, the entire nation could have laws banning smoking in all indoor areas of private sector worksites, restaurants and bars, a study by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has found.

The projection is based on the rate at which states have been adopting comprehensive smoke-free laws. In just the past 10 years, 25 states and the District of Columbia have enacted these laws, the CDC report said.

Eliminating smoking from worksites, restaurants and bars is a low-cost, high-impact strategy that will protect nonsmokers and allow them to live healthier, longer, more productive lives while lowering health care costs associated with secondhand smoke, says CDC. Although there has been progress over the past decade, far too many Americans continue to be exposed to secondhand smoke at their workplaces, increasing their risk of cancer and heart attack.

CDC blames secondhand smoke for 46,000 heart disease deaths and 3,400 lung cancer deaths among nonsmokers each year.

For details on the smoke-free status of every state and the District of Columbia, view the full report at http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/statesystem/Default/Default.

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