Tennessee Smoking Ban the Negative

¶ … Tennessee Smoking Ban

The negative effects of smoking upon the individual's health are undisputed, but they seem insufficient to convince the population to renounce this habit. As such, more and more state governments implement a wide variety of laws to prohibit smoking in several public places. Such a state is Tennessee and they banned smoking in places such as restaurants, bars, hotels, and even the workplace. The law does not ban individuals from smoking in their own time, but prohibits this during work hours. "Employee may not be fired for use of a lawful product during nonwork hours as long as employee observes workplace policy when at work."

After years of discussions, the Tennessee authorities, including organizations such as the Memphis and Shelby County Health Department, have agreed to implement the final form of the smoking ban, effective starting with the first day of October 2007. This raised numerous supporters as well as disclaimers, but also generated a wide series of effects.

The first of these effects have health implications on both active as well as passive smokers. The ban reduced the smoking rate encouraging as such numerous smokers to quit the habit. When they found out they were no longer allowed to smoke in bars, restaurants and at the work place, many of them found it too much of a trouble to go to special places where they could smoke. For others, the ban was a signal which made them realize the serious negative effects of smoking. To others, it was just the push they needed in order to quit. However, not sufficient people have quitted. And even if they didn't quit, they at least reduced the number of smoked cigarettes per day, which is also an improvement.

Then, aside from the health improvements on the former smokers, the effects were also felt by the non-smokers, who are no longer forced to breath in the noxious smoke. This refers to all individuals walking on the street near a lit cigarette, employees who were basically forced to stand the smoke, but most importantly, the employees and patrons of bars and restaurants, who breathe the unhealthy smoke every day. But this has also meant less customers, unsatisfied with the regulations, who instead of going out, preferred to stay within their homes, where they could smoke as much as they wanted. In other words, whereas the ban had a positive effect on heath, it had a negative effect on business. But this conclusion would be more relevant in a context where the law is clear and respected by all. And this is not currently the case, as the law is filled with inconsistencies which only encourage the search for loopholes in the system. For instance, the smoking ban is lifted from "age-restricted venues, most commonly known as bars; private homes, private residences and private motor vehicles unless used for child care or day care; open-air patios, porches, decks or any area enclosed by a garage-type door when all of those doors are open and tents with removable sides or vents; private clubs such as country clubs; up to 25% of hotel/motel rooms are allowed to be smoking; tobacco manufacturers, importers and wholesalers as well as tobacco shops; nursing homes and long-term care facilities; commercial vehicles when occupied only by the driver; businesses with three or fewer employees, as long as they smoke in an enclosed area not accessible to the public." All this means that the ban is not effective nor applied as it should be. And a major effect it generated was controversy and a never ending dispute.

In order to retain their customers, local facilities have changed their status. For instance, a local diner and family place, posed on their door the "21 and over" sign as to be considered an age-restricted venue and still keep its smoking customers. And this procedure is more and more common, especially after bar sales dropped at a rate of 20 up to 30% per week when patrons did not allow smoking. They explained that once they turned to "21 and over," they sales went back up.

Other bars kept the smoking restriction and their customers went into the street to smoke. The success of this measure is given by the fact that most smokers are anyway uncomfortable to be smoking around non-smokers; therefore no major complaints were registered. But the fact that some of the facilities remained free from smoking only meant that the revenues of the "21 and over" bars allowing smoking have increased.