Most council members back stronger smoking rules

Smokers who enjoy lighting up in a bar or private club in Columbus could soon see an end to this act, 24-Hour News 8’s news partner The Republic reports. Most members of the Columbus City Council support a stronger city ordinance which currently follows state law.

 Certain exemptions are provided by state law, including for bars, private clubs, casinos and horse riding facilities. Passage of a local smoking ordinance in 2005 drew heated opposition. The ordinance took effect in 2006 and was similar to the current state law passed in July.

 At a special City Council meeting on Monday, the only turn out was of people who favor a stronger ordinance. Councilman Ryan Brand said the lack of opposition reflects changing attitudes toward smoking. Brand also says this is a sign that the time is right to pass a stricter local smoking ordinance.

St. Charles County Council move could limit smoking ban lawsuit

Legislation will be introduced Monday night to correct inconsistent language in the county ordinance passed last month that put a smoking ban package on the Nov. 6 ballot. Approval of the clean-up measure could remove some legal arguments in a lawsuit filed Thursday seeking to keep the two smoking-related questions off the ballot.

The suit, filed by bowling alley owner Terry Alexander, alleges that the ballot questions in the council-approved ordinance include language clashing with other parts of the ordinance such as new wording that would go into the county charter. For example, the suit points out, the planned charter wording doesn't include a proposed exemption for private clubs in one of the two ballot issues. Such wording could mislead voters, the suit says.

Council Chairwoman Nancy Matheny, R-Weldon Spring, said she expected that the clean-up measure would be passed at the council's Sept. 24 meeting. Matheny said county attorneys had suggested changing the wording before the suit was filed. The clean-up bill, however, doesn't address the suit's separate argument that the council violated a county charter requirement regarding introduction of bills. The charter says bills must be read aloud in their entirety when introduced unless written copies are available to the public through the county registrar's office at least 36 hours before the meeting.

In this instance, the suit notes, the bill wasn't submitted in time but still wasn't read in full. County Counselor Joann Leykam has said previous court cases concluded that such rules don't apply to measures that ultimately are decided in an election. The lawsuit by Alexander, a former county treasurer, was assigned to Circuit Judge Lucy Rauch. Under the council's unusual two-question plan, voters would first decide on a proposal for a countywide ban on smoking in enclosed public places and places of employment.

They then would vote on a separate proposition exempting private clubs and any facility where patrons and employees are over age 21, such as bars and casino gambling floors. The exemption measure also would apply to 20 percent of hotel rooms. The propositions would apply to both unincorporated areas and municipalities, although cities would still be allowed to enact tougher laws of their own.

Stop-Smoking Clinic At Hospital In New Britain

The Hospital for Special Care will offer a smoking cessation program starting Sept. 11. An American Lung Association-trained leader will runs the sessions. Registration is under way, and is open to adults 18 and over.

 "Because most people know that smoking is dangerous, this program will teach adult smokers the skills and techniques they need to focus exclusively on how to quit, and more importantly, to stay quit," said Elyse Carroll, pulmonary rehabilitation coordinator at the hospital.

NYC's new smoking cessation campaign will hit home on Staten Island

A new city Health Department campaign aims to show New Yorkers the devastating side effects of smoking. Dubbed, “Suffering Every Minute,” the initiative includes two new television, Internet and print ads depicting the suffering caused by smoking-related illness. In one ad, a man violently coughs as a symptom of lung cancer. In the other, a woman must be cared for by her young son as she suffers from the late stages of smoking-related cancer.

The ads end with the stark statistics: 285,000 Americans are living with lung cancer caused by smoking, and more than 846,000 are living with cancer caused by smoking. On Staten Island, more than 13 percent of residents smoke, and the borough also has the highest rates of smoking for youth in the city, according to the Staten Island Smoke-Free Partnership.

The Health Department states that smoking continues to be the leading cause of premature preventable deaths in the city. While the smoking rate has significantly declined since 2002, hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers still smoke, putting themselves and those they love at risk of disease, disability and death.

Anti-smoking group reaches out to migrants

An Australian anti-smoking lobby group has begun a multicultural outreach program to help migrants kick the habit. Quit Victoria is partnering with the Chinese Cancer Society in an effort to translate resources, train Chinese-speaking educators and provide material for local Chinese newspapers.

Quit Victoria multicultural outreach program manager, Luke Atkin, told Radio Australia's Connect Asia the majority of Asian countries have a higher prevalence of smoking than Australia does. Mr Atkin says there is evidence that when people move to a country of lower smoking prevalence, such as Australia, there is an "increased number of quit attempts."

He says Quit have been working with many countries in the region on smoking legislation, quit help-lines and graphic health warnings. "They don't necessarily have the same level of protections around things like second-hand smoke either so I think the landscape is very different for many people from those countries," Mr Atkin said. Research shows most people have between 13 and 17 quit attempts before they're successful, Mr Atkin added.

ACL may repeat smoking ban

Smokers attending the Austin City Limits music festival may be constrained for the second year in a row because of a burn ban set for all of Travis County. The Travis County Commissioners Court approved a ban on all outdoor burning after moisture readings indicated the soil was drying up. In the wake of the Bastrop County complex fire, which destroyed more than 30,000 acres, the county also issued a burn ban last year that restricted smoking at Zilker Park, where ACL is held.

Travis County fire marshal Hershel Lee said only those who abide by hot work procedures will be allowed to burn anything. He did not comment on whether smoking restrictions will be seen at this year’s ACL festival. Last year, a ban restricted smoking and building fires at ACL, forcing patrons to remove themselves from the grounds before lighting up. “Only those who abide by the hot work procedures of cutting, welding and grinding are the exception,” he said.

 Procedures include making sure that the surrounding 25 feet of workspace is free from vegetation, always having a fire extinguisher handy and making sure a fire watch person is nearby at all times. Biology junior Alex Moore bought tickets for the upcoming festival and said she thinks it is a smart idea to initiate a smoking ban. “Although personally I don’t smoke cigarettes, I completely understand the seriousness of a burn ban and would understand if a smoking ban was implemented,” Moore said. She did, however, have other concerns. “Do you know if the ban includes marijuana? Because if so, I’m going to have to get high beforehand,” Moore said.

Smoking warning during movie will distract: Kabir Bedi

The government has lifted the ban on showing smoking scenes in movies but internationally acclaimed actor Kabir Bedi is not happy and says the rule to show statutory warning during such scenes will be a distraction too. "Disclaimers before and after film apart, mandatory banner warnings during smoking scenes are a violation of creative rights.

Breaks attention," Kabir tweeted. The government had Tuesday informed the Supreme Court that it would shortly permit smoking scenes in films - though with the strict stipulation that one of the actors in the scene warns viewers that "smoking kills", while a static message would be displayed in the course of the scene showing smoking.