Letter: In favor of smoke-free state

Dear Editor,

On behalf of a tobacco-free healthcare campus committed to public health, I urge legislators to act now to make Wisconsin the 25th state with a comprehensive smoke-free workplace policy.

We support the regulation of a product that affects the health of the community. Second-hand smoke has a proven association with asthma and middle ear infections in children, heart disease, lung cancer, sudden infant death syndrome and other respiratory illnesses.

Second-hand smoke exposure is also causally associated with low birth weight, spontaneous abortion and stroke. The severity, cost and frequency of these illnesses can be reduced by eliminating tobacco smoke exposure.

We know secondhand smoke causes death and disease in people who don’t smoke. A smoke-free decision is not an issue of freedom or constitutional rights — it’s an issue of a healthier environment for everyone.

David R. Miller, River Falls

President, River Falls Area Hospital

Tags: opinion, hudson, letter, wisconsin, smokefree, state