Freedom to Breathe law marks fifth year

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LUVERNE — Minnesota’s Freedom to Breathe Act, the legislation that prohibited smoking inside bars, restaurants, workplaces and indoor public spaces, marked its fifth anniversary Monday, and though the milestone was worthy of celebrations Monday night in Hardwick and Marshall, local health officials say there is still more work to be done.

Paula Bloemendaal, tobacco control and policy coordinator for Southwest Health and Human Services, said the Freedom to Breathe law has been an overwhelming success, with an 85 percent drop in exposure to secondhand smoke since the law took effect on Oct. 1, 2007.

Today’s traditional college students have never experienced a night on the town in smoke-filled bars, and kindergarteners have never had to wait with their parents to get seated in the non-smoking section of a restaurant as cigarette smoke wafted through the air of the smoking section.

“How great it is for those kids … to not have to be exposed to secondhand smoke,” Bloemendaal said. “It’s really cool when you think about it, but at the same time, we still have some work to do.”

Exposure to secondhand smoke is still the No. 1 cause of preventable death in the United States, she said, adding people who live in apartment buildings, children who go to daycares where cigarettes are smoked during off-hours, and those who share car rides with smokers are still at risk.

Once employed as health educator for the former Nobles-Rock Community Health Services, Bloemendaal moved with Rock County in its Jan. 1 pairing with Lincoln, Lyon, Murray and Pipestone counties. Still, she continues to work with Nobles County’s tobacco education program through the Southwest CHIP (Community Health Improvement Program) Coalition funded by ClearWay Minnesota.

“We continue to work toward policies and cessation efforts because there really is no bigger bang for your buck,” she said. “That’s what has the greatest impact on helping people quit and keeping kids from starting.”

Each year in Minnesota, Bloemendaal said 6,800 kids become regular smokers. Nearly as many Minnesotans — 5,100 — die every year from tobacco related illnesses ranging from cancers to emphysema.

“We know that the (tobacco) industry, they’re still winning,” Bloemendaal said. “They’re getting that target age group that they need to have lifelong smokers.”

Next steps

The No. 1 complaint among people regarding exposure to secondhand smoke now stems from those who deal with it in apartment buildings, according to Bloemendaal.

“Smoke doesn’t know how to stay in individual units,” she said, adding the push continues to get apartment complexes to voluntarily go smoke-free.

One of the greatest successes thus far is in Worthington, where the Housing and Redevelopment Authority is getting closer to its 12-12-12 campaign deadline to get all HRA buildings smoke-free by Dec. 12, 2012.

Bloemendaal said efforts are now under way in both Rock and Murray counties to take similar actions.

While efforts to encourage 24-hour smoke-free daycares aren’t part of the current tobacco reduction funding, Bloemendaal said she is encouraged by policies now in place in both Redwood and Cottonwood counties. There, daycare and foster care facilities are required to be smoke-free 24 hours a day and adults are also not allowed to smoke in vehicles while transporting daycare and foster children.

“It’s certainly a trend that’s moving across the state,” she said. “We’re proud of Redwood County and Cottonwood County in that people working on it there and the daycare providers could see the health of the children is the most important thing.”

Sharing in success

When the Freedom to Breathe law took effect five years ago, there was considerable concern among bar and restaurant owners and managers about the impact the smoking ban would have on business.

Bloemendaal said research has shown no statistical significant employment changes in bars or restaurants regionally and statewide.

“We visited just about all of the restaurants and bars in Nobles and Rock counties and we got the majority of them to sign support forms for the Freedom to Breathe law,” she said. “They liked it, it was working well and they didn’t want any changes to it — to weaken or strengthen it.”

Sue Schweigert, general manager of Perkins in Worthington, said the law is working well and business has actually increased because the restaurant is now smoke-free.

“The guests really appreciate walking into a business and not having it smell like smokers,” Schweigert said. “They like being able to walk in and get seated right away, versus having a smoking and non-smoking section.”

Schweigert said going smoke-free at the restaurant has also helped out the interior, as far as cleaning goes, and except for some complaining early on, she said people don’t have an issue with the law.

“There’s not as many smokers as there was back in the day,” she added.

At Worthington’s VFW Post, Manager Toni Walters said she, too, enjoys the law.

“At first I think it impacted everybody, but now everybody’s so used to going outside that I don’t think it’s affected (business),” Walters said. “Even me, as a smoker, I enjoy it more. I don’t go home smelling like a cigarette.”

Bloemendaal said air pollution from secondhand smoke particles has decreased by 95 percent in bars and restaurants since the Freedom to Breathe law took effect. She also said a 2011 poll showed 79 percent of Minnesotans support the law.

Daily Globe Reporter Julie Buntjer may be reached at 376-7330.

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