Advocate Addresses Smoke-Free Laws in Chicago Tribune

Chicago Tribune: December 5, 2009

Ignoring Smoke-Free Laws
I was extremely disappointed to read that some bar owners are ignoring the Smoke-free Illinois Act ("Despite smoke ban, defiance smolders; Some bars have become havens for lighting up, and smokers pitch in to help owners pay fines," Page 1, Nov. 25).

As a cardiologist, I support this law and urge authorities to enforce it.

A majority of people throughout our state share this position. The numbers have spoken: Smoke-free laws reduce heart attacks; this has been proven many times. The seductive notion of rebellion against the government notwithstanding, flaunting the smoke-free law is not a virtue.

Imagine being one of my patients. Before the smoke-free law went into effect, once patients got sick, many could never return to the places they had frequented their entire lives -- their favorite restaurants, bars or clubs. As cardiac patients, they simply could not afford any exposure to secondhand smoke.

This law expanded their universe and enriched their lives. We're talking about our relatives, friends and neighbors. Do we really want to exclude them?

Unfortunately, debate on this issue has produced more heat than light. It has drowned out the voices of the majority, who are delighted to have equal access to all establishments while avoiding secondhand smoke.

While I believe that going smoke-free was the right thing to do, I realize that some people disagree. I respect their right to try to overturn this law but not to ignore it.

In the meantime, smoke-free opponents can be comforted by the fact that avoiding secondhand smoke reduces the chances that they'll ever need to meet me in the emergency room with a heart attack!

-- Annabelle Volgman, MD, American Heart Association, Chicago