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A panel of local leaders congregated Wednesday night at the behest of an organization traveling Indiana to advocate for a comprehensive, statewide workplace smoking ban.
“It’s not should we (implement a smoking ban),” said Mike Packnett, chief executive of Fort Wayne-based Parkview Health. “We’ve got to do it now.”
He and others argued not only in health, but economic terms, for a statewide smoking ban that mirrors Fort Wayne’s.
Packnett quoted an estimate by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that the average adult smoker costs employers $3,400 a year in lost productivity and excess medical expenses. The figure would likely be higher today because the estimate comes from a 2002 report.
The town-hall style meeting at the Allen County Public Library lasted about an hour before being cut short during the question-and-answer portion by a power outage that closed the library for the night.
But before the outage, other panelists – including Dr. Deborah McMahan, Allen County health commissioner and president of the Fort Wayne Medical Society – had their say.
“At least 50,000 Americans die of secondhand smoke each year,” McMahan said. She referred anyone who doubted the negative effects of secondhand smoke to a 2006 surgeon general’s report.
County Commissioner Nelson Peters said supporters of a statewide smoking ban would be best served by strengthening the local movement.
He conceded that the county’s ban, which let cities and towns opt out, fell short of doing what he hopes will be done statewide.
“We didn’t frankly get the job done,” Peters said. He added that a state ban would level the playing field between counties and cities like Fort Wayne with surrounding municipalities.
About 25 attended the meeting Wednesday night – some associated with organizations that are a part of the Indiana Campaign for Smokefree Air, which is advocating for the state ban with meetings around Indiana. Although it was expected that most in attendance were sympathetic to the cause, some questions submitted in writing probed for more information.
Fort Wayne’s smoking ban has met with fierce resistance from some, especially bar owners who say it has taken a bite out of their business.
But panelist Vicky Lacy, a respiratory therapist with Heart Center Medical Group, said as circumstances change – such as whether one smokes – so can a person’s perspective.
“I think ordinances, laws, things of that nature help change attitudes as well,” she said.
It remains to be seen whether enough Hoosiers feel the same way to support a statewide smoking ban.
mschroeder@jg.net
