NYC clears the air; healthy results expected

The anti-smoking measure may have ended a romanticized era, but the benefits to smokers and nonsmokers alike are well worth it.

With what one news story described as "fear, loathing and lament," New York City is finally clearing the air, meaning that the Big Apple is a bit closer to living up to its health-conscious nickname.

Leading the state of New York, which is expected to follow suit soon, New York City took the enlightened step of banning smoking in restaurants, pool halls, bingo parlors, bowling alleys and the city's 14 jails.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a former smoker himself, pushed through the ban, saying people don't want smokers nearby in public places. He predicted that people will adjust quickly and lives will be saved.

Under the law, first violations will be subject to fines of up to $400; second violations $1,000; and third violations up to $2,000. The city also can shut down establishments that receive three violations within a year.

Some call it legislating morality. Others say they are sad that the romanticized era of hazy bars, lighting a lady's smoke and getting a phone number on the back of a matchbook cover are over.

But it's a smart, healthy choice that will save lives.

This is not legislating morality. Smoking still will be allowed in cars, private residences and a few pre-existing cigar bars. But it won't be allowed in places where the public gathers, where people should be allowed to dine, socialize or work in smoke-free zones.

After all, public sentiment is on the mayor's side, with recent polls showing 94 percent of respondents, even smokers, support banning smoking from all workplaces, or at least restricting it to separately ventilated areas.

Besides, the health benefits are obvious. The health department found that more than 400,000 New York City nonsmoking workers, which is about one out of seven, inhale second-hand smoke all or most of the time while on the job. More than two-thirds of these workers are black, Asian or Latino, according to health officials.

A recent Montana study reinforces the notion that initiatives like this one work. Researchers looked at Helena, Mont., for six months after it implemented a smoke-free ordinance. During that time, the number of heart attack victims fell by almost 60 percent at one hospital in the area.

Researchers said this is the first empirical evidence showing that smoke-free environments help prevent heart attacks, something most of us realized years ago.

When the state of New York passes its law, it will become just the third state in the country to institute such a ban. Most states have stuck to regulating government workplaces.

New York is leading the way. Other states should consider snuffing out smoking in public places.