As unpleasant as a ban on smoking outside state office buildings will be for some Delawareans, the twofold benefit is irresistible. The rise in residents’ quitting a dangerous health habit directly linked to their tobacco addiction will continue. And the residual benefits of slowing the growth of a $1 billion health care tab — almost 40 percent of the state’s budget — created by smoking workers, retirees and Medicaid reci ... Jump to full article >>

The idea that businesses should not hire tobacco users may look good on paper, but it doesn’t provide a solution to the larger issue: ending addiction to a deadly substance. A Jan. 12 article in The Tennessean, “More employers refuse to hire tobacco users,” reported on the growing trend of companies, especially among hospitals, refusing to hire individuals who use tobacco. The story mentioned the Cookeville Regional Medical Center consider ... Jump to full article >>

Mount Clemens— A judge Monday denied a Warren bar owner’s request to declare the state’s smoking ban unconstitutional but did toss out a fine the man incurred, agreeing some elements of the law are confusing. Boyd Cottrell, owner of Sporty O’Toole’s, likens his Mound Road bar to a “small-scale casino” and has said the smoking law, which took effect May 1, is unfairly restricting his establishment, while gami ... Jump to full article >>

Citizens for a Smoke-Free Cape on Monday reported total contributions of nearly $83,000, almost all of which came from the American Cancer Society, to persuade voters to pass a citywide smoking ban next week. That figure left leaders of the opposition, which reported a relatively meager $3,070, aghast. Meanwhile, Smoke-Free Cape contends the opposition rhetoric is meant to put a smoke-screen over the health hazards of secondhand smoke. “Th ... Jump to full article >>

OTTAWA – Health Canada released larger and more graphic health warnings for cigarette packages last week, part of draft regulations that would require labels and warning to be included on the inside and outside of packs, the Montreal Gazette reports. Twelve new images to cover 75 percent of the outside of cigarette packages were introduced along with eight new health message that will appear on the inside in full color, distinguishing Canada� ... Jump to full article >>

Smokers actually do have a shaky foothold in the City Council – not that it helps much. After the Council voted, 36 to 12, last week to ban smoking in city parks, beaches and public plazas, the Daily News reported Sunday that one reason could be the lack of smokers on the Council. More than a dozen Council members and staffers said they hadn’t seen a member regularly lighting up in years – though some enjoy the occasional cigar ... Jump to full article >>

So long, cigar bars and hotel smoking rooms. Maybe. A Lincoln judge has ruled that certain exceptions to the statewide smoking ban — specifically those that allow smoking in cigar bars, tobacco stores and some hotel rooms — are unconstitutional special treatment for those businesses. The finding likely will be appealed as early as Thursday. “I’m just confident that will be the case,” said Omaha Sen. Scott Lautenbau ... Jump to full article >>

PARIS — French politicians on Wednesday voted to overturn rules that saw iconic comedian Jacques Tati lose his beloved pipe and existentialist writer Jean-Paul Sartre ditch his trademark cigarette. A parliamentary commission voted for a bill that would exclude cultural heritage from the stringent health legislation passed in 1991 that forbids any direct or indirect promotion of smoking. Last year posters for a Tati retrospective in Paris showe ... Jump to full article >>

INDIANAPOLIS – A House committee plans to exempt casinos from a bill imposing a statewide smoking ban after an analyst said the state could lose nearly $200 million annually if customers can’t smoke at gambling venues. The Health Committee took more than two hours of testimony on House Bill 1018 and then delayed a vote to next week. But Chairman Tim Brown, R-Crawfordsville, said the bill won’t move forward unless the casino exemption is ad ... Jump to full article >>

The new casino and the proposed smoking ban, two of Cape Girardeau’s biggest issues, are on a collision course, and the Cape Girardeau City Council plans to address them both. However, there may not be much the council can do other than watch the whole thing play out. On Nov. 2, the day Cape Girardeau voters were approving a proposal to allow Isle of Capri to build a $125 million casino, a group of residents were busy collecting enough sig ... Jump to full article >>