North Dakota is taking steps towards better health with a clean indoor air law that will take effect on Aug. 1. The downside is that some restaurants will use a loophole in the law by enclosing the bar area so that smoking can continue.
Customers and employees should read the writing on the wall: If a business owner builds a wall to allow smoking in the bar area, they are sending a clear message. They have no concern for the health of their customers or employees. Dangerous toxins will seep into the "clean" part of the establishment and the staff who serve customers in the bar will continue to be exposed to secondhand smoke.
Smoke free laws are designed to protect the health of our communities. Building walls makes these protections ineffective. Smoke in the bar area of a busy restaurant, with doors opening and closing, will reach diners and put them at risk for heart attack, stroke, cancer and all the other effects of secondhand smoke.
Business owners should focus on the 80 percent of North Dakota residents who do not smoke, rather than buying in to the unsubstantiated fears touted by the tobacco industry. People do not want to risk their lives while dining out.
Totally smoke-free is the only way to go. If you see a wall being built at your local restaurant, the message is clear - your health doesn't matter.
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The new statewide smoke free law is an important first step. We will continue to work with policy makers and health groups at the community and state level to bring 100 percent smoke free protections to North Dakota. Rather than build a wall, businesses would be well advised to use their money instead to give a fresh start to their facility for Aug. 1.
June Herman
American Heart Association
Minneapolis
