R 108

2015 -- H 5804 Enacted 03/05/2015

H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

PROCLAIMING MARCH 5, 2015, TO BE "SMOKE FREE 10 DAY" IN THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

Introduced By: Representatives Handy, Ackerman, McNamara, Tobon, and Ruggiero

Date Introduced: March 05, 2015

WHEREAS, The use of cigarettes and other tobacco products remains the nation's and

Rhode Island's number one cause of preventable death and disease. Smoking kills more than

sixteen hundred Rhode Island residents annually, more than all the deaths caused by alcohol,

AIDS, car crashes, illegal drugs, murder, and suicides combined; and

WHEREAS, Cigarette smoke contains over 7,000 chemicals, 69 of which are known to

cause cancer, and secondhand smoke involuntarily inhaled by nonsmokers from other people's

cigarettes is classified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as a known human (Group

A) carcinogen; and

WHEREAS, According to the American Lung Association, secondhand smoke is

responsible for approximately 3,400 lung cancer deaths and 46,000 (ranging 22,700-69,600) heart

disease deaths in adult nonsmokers annually in the United States; and

WHEREAS, Nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke at work are at increased risk for

adverse health effects. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, levels

of secondhand smoke in restaurants and bars were found to be 2 to 5 times higher than in

residences with smokers and 2 to 6 times higher than in office workplaces; and

WHEREAS, Ten years ago Rhode Island chose health by enacting the 2004 Public

Health and Workplace Safety Act, banning indoor smoking in bars, restaurants, offices, factories

and nearly every workplace in the state, encompassing industries where a disproportionate

percentage of this priority population is likely to work; and

WHEREAS, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that "studies have

shown that smoke-free laws that prohibit smoking in public places like bars and restaurants help

improve the health of workers and the general population"; and

WHEREAS, A decade of smoke-free workplaces and public places, together with a high

state tax on cigarettes and support for smokers to quit, has delivered significant health benefits for

Rhode Islanders, helping to reduce the adult smoking rate from 23% in 2001 to 17.4% in 2013,

and the youth smoking rate from 35% in 2001 to 8.1% in 2013, the second lowest in the nation;

and

WHEREAS, A 2012 study from the Rhode Island Department of Health showed that

hospitalization rates in Rhode Island for acute myocardial infarction (AMI), commonly known as

heart attack, dropped 28.4% since 2005, representing a potential savings to the State of over $6

million; and

WHEREAS, Rhode Island helped lead the way nationwide by becoming only the seventh

state to ban indoor smoking in workplaces and public places in 2004, with 18 other states

following suit in the following four years, and 30 states now legally designating smoke-free

indoor areas; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and

Providence Plantations hereby proclaims March 5, 2015 to be "Smoke Free 10 Day" in the State

of Rhode Island, honoring the tenth anniversary of the enactment of the 2004-2005 Public Health

and Workplace Safety Act; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to the Director of the Rhode Island Department of

Health.

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LC002050

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