Smoking ban proposed for Virginia bars

By Erin Johnson

It is the end of the week, and after a hard day's work many people go to a local bar to have a couple of drinks, have a smoke a cigarette, and socialize with fellow bar goers. After Virginia's recent ban on smoking in most restaurants and bars, this picture seems to change has changed dramatically.
On Feb. 9, the Virginia House of Delegates met to vote on the smoking ban, which gives the Virginia government a say in how the local restaurants and bars impose and create their smoking rules.
Tobacco has been a staple in Virginia's trade and economy since Virginia was first colonized. However, almost any form of tobacco is harmful to people's health. According to the National Institutes of Health, smoking kills over 400,000 people in the U.S. each year, not only through direct smoking but also through second hand smoke.
The vote on the smoking ban comes at a perfectly controversial time. Since the economy at the moment is in a deep recession, many might argue that this ban comes at the worst possible time. Tobacco is critical to the state's economy, being grown and sold in every county, and it is possible that the ban could decrease tobacco sale, something like this could worsen the state's economy.
Nonetheless, the state's health is much more important that the state's economy. Smoking kills, and although a bad economy gets rid of jobs and money, it does not lead to death.
The ban does not, however, completely get rid of smoking in bars and restaurants. The proposal created by Gov. Timothy Kaine (D) permits smoking in private clubs and in bars or restaurants that have separately ventilated smoking rooms for those who wish to smoke.
While it does not eliminate smoking in these public places, the ban is a huge step forward for Virginia. The health concerns over smoking and secondhand smoke has made 23 other states and Washington D.C. create bans like this one. This is an especially important moment for anti-smokers in Virginia because Virginia has been considered "tobacco country", and now has created bans on smoking.
This ban, if created into a bill, would make Virginia the first state in the South to approve of a ban of smoking in restaurants and bars.
While this is a step forward, anti-smoking groups still have complaints with it. The ban does not completely ban smoking in all bars and restaurants, only in public establishments; which still allows for the danger of secondhand smoke.
Also, the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, and the American Lung Association all think that the proposal is not specific enough on what embodies the separate room that it required. They also argue against the consequence for violating this ban, which is a $25 fine for the company.
Secondhand smoke can be deadly, and the people who get sick from it are not even willingly choosing to smoke. If the ban is passed, and smoking is stopped in bars and restaurants the number of secondhand smoking deaths will decrease. Although the proposal has flaws, it is a step in the right direction.

By Alan Weintraut |  February 18, 2009; 12:40 PM ET
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