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Smoke Free Air Ordinance
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<br />There is indisputable evidence that implementing 100% smoke -free environments is the only
<br />effective way to protect the population from the harmful effects of exposure to secondhand smoke.
<br />(World Health Organization (WHO), "Protection from exposure to secondhand smoke: policy recommendations," World
<br />Health Organization (WHO), 2007.)
<br />In reviewing 11 studies concluding that communities see an immediate reduction in heart attack
<br />admissions after the implementation of comprehensive smoke free laws, the Institute of Medicine of the
<br />National Academies concluded that data consistently demonstrate that secondhand smoke exposure
<br />increases the risk of coronary heart disease and heart attacks and that smoke free laws reduce heart
<br />attacks. (Institute of Medicine (IOM) of the National Academies, Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice,
<br />Committee on Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Acute Coronary Events, "Secondhand smoke exposure and cardiovascular
<br />effects: making sense of the evidence," Washington, DC: National Academies Press, October 2009.)
<br />A significant amount of secondhand smoke exposure occurs in the workplace. Employees who
<br />work in smoke -filled businesses suffer a 25 -50% higher risk of heart attack and higher rates of death
<br />from cardiovascular disease and cancer, as well as increased acute respiratory disease and measurable
<br />decrease in lung function. (Pitsavos, C.; Panagiotakos, D.B.; Chrysohoou, C.; Skoumas, J.; Tzioumis, K.; Stefanadis, C.;
<br />Toutouzas, P., "Association between exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and the development of acute coronary
<br />syndromes: the CARDI02000 case - control study," Tobacco Control 11(3): 220 -225, September 2002.)
<br />Studies measuring cotinine (metabolized nicotine) and NNAL (metabolized nitrosamine NNK, a
<br />tobacco- specific carcinogen linked to lung cancer) in hospitality workers find dramatic reductions in the
<br />levels of these biomarkers after a smoke free law takes effect. Average cotinine levels of New York City
<br />restaurant and bar workers decreased by 85% after the city's smoke free law went into effect. ([In.a.], "The
<br />State of Smoke -Free New York City: A One Year Review," New York City Department of Finance, New York City
<br />Department of Health & Mental Hygiene, New York City Department of Small Business Services, New York City Economic
<br />Development Corporation, March 2004).
<br />After the implementation of Ontario, Canada's Smoke free Indoor Air Law, levels of NNAL
<br />were reduced by 52% in nonsmoking casino employees and cotinine levels fell by 98 %. (Geoffrey T. Fong,
<br />et. al., "The Impact of the Smoke -Free Ontario Act on Air Quality and Biomarkers of Exposure in Casinos: A Quasi -
<br />Experimental Study," Ontario Tobacco Control Conference, Niagara Falls, Ontario, December 2, 2006.)
<br />Following a Health Hazard Evaluation of Las Vegas casino employees' secondhand smoke
<br />exposure in the workplace, which included indoor air quality tests and biomarker assessments, the
<br />National Institute of Occupational Safety & Health ( NIOSH) concluded that the casino employees are
<br />exposed to dangerous levels of secondhand smoke at work and that their bodies absorb high levels of
<br />tobacco- specific chemicals NNK and cotinine during work shifts. NIOSH also concluded that the "best
<br />means of eliminating workplace exposure to [secondhand smoke] is to ban all smoking in the casinos."
<br />(Health hazard evaluation report: environmental and biological assessment of environmental tobacco smoke exposure among
<br />casino dealers, Las Vegas, NV. By Achutan C, West C, Mueller C, Boudreau Y, Mead K. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department
<br />of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and
<br />Health, NIOSH HETA No. 2005 -0076 and 2005- 0201 -3080, May 2009.)
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