Smoking Bans

Smoking Bans

Smoking has had many affects on health. Smokers and smokers alike have had to deal with these consequences since the early 1600th century. In 1964, scientific evidence concluded that smoking was not only harmful, but hazardous to anyone who came in contact with it. The U.S. Surgeon General declared that smoking is causally related to lung cancer. Warnings on cigarette packs have changed over the last 40 years. The Surgeon General hopes that the drastic message it displays (Cigarettes are hazardous to your health and Cigarette smoke contains carbon monoxide are among the many messages cigarette packs display) will discourage smokers from continuing to light up. In 1986, The U.S. Surgeon General Declared that even involuntary smoking was harmful. (Hudson 28) Children of parents who smoke compared with children of nonsmokers have increased respiratory illnesses and smaller rates of increased lung function according to the 1986 Surgeon General report. Even having Smoking and non-smoking sections at restaurants may reduce the risk, but it will not eliminate it. A small amount of work places started to ban smoking in the work environment in the 1970’s. The EPA found conclusive evidence that ETS (Environmental Tobacco Smoke) presents a serious and large public health impact. ETS is a human lung Carcinogen that is responsible for nearly 3,000 deaths per year. (Surgeon General 28) Many of the health issues regarding smoking have ended up in major lawsuits. There have been many lawsuits against tobacco companies since the late 1970’s. The basis of the suits were related to the cause from smoking, plaintiff either being smokers or non smokers. Some of these cases have taken so long to get a trial date that the defendant(s) might not actually be alive when the court proceedings start. The burden then gets passes on to the executor of said person’s estate, who has the choice to continue the proceedings. The Warning on cigarettes was not very clear prior to 1964. Many did not know, nor did the tobacco companies state that smoking causes lung cancer and inevitably death. Landmark cases against Phillip Morris, Liggett Group, and American Tobacco Co. have tried to deny that tobacco smoke is directly related to lung cancer and other illnesses. Large cigarette companies have been accused of trying to conceal and misrepresent material facts about the danger of smoking and second hand smoke. One case in particular involved a flight attendant, (Gail Routh) who started in 1972(Gail Routh), who served on flights before smoking was banned on them. She sued R.J. Reynolds, Lorillard Tobacco, and Williamson Tobacco Corporation claiming that her exposure to second hand smoke had caused her lung cancer and conditions of chronic sinusitis and bronchitis. October of 2003, a jury in Florida decided against her. They found the evidence inconclusive. Routh’s lawyer said “This is a woman who was as healthy as can be when she started working in 1972, a lifetime nonsmoker who had no medical problems. Everything points to secondhand smoke as the cause.”(Hudson 24) Cigarette smoking is the only preventable leading cause of death.

Smoking is one of the costliest habits that exist today. Cigarettes which range from $4.50 to over $6.00 a pack can cost the average smoker around $1,900 a year. Add life insurance to this equation with nonsmoker’s rates between $570 and $1,035 and a smoker’s rates around $4,250 per year for the same coverage on a $500,000 policy . Health insurance does not fluctuate as much with deductibles for a nonsmoker at $239 and a smoker’s at $276 per month.(Smith 1) Home insurance is more