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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0013.037 2002-2004 AMERICAN Oahu LUNG 245 N. Kukui Street ASSOCIATION. Suite 100 Honolulu, HI 96817-3999 Of f"'~QVVOfl Fax: (808) 537-5971 Phone: (808)537-5966 May 1, 2003 Kauai 2992 Umi Street Lihue, HI 96766 Fax: (808)245-8488 Phone: (808) 245-4142 RKENt~ Human Services and Economic Development Committee 7-'S3eam. Maui Hawaii Count Council a5/o2 95 Mahalani Street y Wailuku, HI 96793 25 Aupuni Street ~yn}p Fax: (808) 242-9041 Hilo HI 96720 Phone: (808) 2445110 Hawaii Attention: Committee Chair Fred C. Holschuh, M.D. 8 Committee Members 39 Ululani Street Hilo, HI 96720 Fax: (806) 935-7474 Jennifer Rush, American Lung Association of Hawaii Phone' (808) 9351206 TESTIMONY FOR HAWAII COUNTY BILL NO. 260 Relating to Smoking in Certain Public Places in Hawaii County Websife: www.ala-hawaii.ora On behalf of the American Lung Association of Hawaii, I hereby submit support for Emait: the intent of Bill 260 as amended. The American Lung Association of Hawaii (ALAN) luna(aDala-hawaii.ora feels all children and adults should be protected from environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) in all public places and workplaces. As an asthmatic, I can tell you that passing Bill 260 will give myself and others with lung diseases a freedom others take for granted -the freedom to work, shop and dine without having to first determine if smoking is allowed. Frequenting establishments where smoking occurs is simply not an option forme. Remove indoor smoking and I am free to patronize more local establishments. Exposure to ETS is a life and death matter. As shown in the attached press release from the American Heart Association, banning smoking in public places in Helena Montana has resulted in a 60°/g drop in hospital admissions for acute myocardial infarction during the first six months the ordinance was in force. Each year more than 440,000 Americans die from smoking related illnesses. About 35,000 of these are nonsmokers, who, because of environmental tobacco smoke, die from coronary heart disease. The workers in Hawaii County deserve the same protection as the workers in the cities of Boston and Dallas, and the states of California, Delaware and New York. Please protect the workers and public of Hawaii County. Remember, "When You When You Can't Can't Breathe Nothing Else Matters Breathe, Nothing Else Mahalo Nui Loa, Matters® Founded in 1904, the J nifer h (fl, American Lung Association Open Airways for School Program Assistant includes afflliatetl Comm. IVo. ' ~ associations throughout ~y~~ the U.S., and a medical Ref. TQt~~ section, tha American Ref. Dore Thoracic Society American Heart Association. Fwa~kq Hwc Di,a... rna sank. For lmmediate Release Contact: Charles Hodges (('har/es Hodges~~heur[.ore) Eric Bolton (Eric.Bolkm~~heurt.ori,) (202)785-7900 New Study Shows Smoking Bans Have an Immediate Impact on Reducing Heart Disease Washington, April 1 -New evidence linking secondhand tobacco smoke to heart disease should encourage more cities and states to prohibit smoking in workplaces, according to the American Heart Association. The evidence, released during a presentation of a study at the 52nd Annual College of Cardiology Scientific Session in Chicago, provides empirical evidence that smokefree ordinances can have an immediate and dramatic impact on heart disease morbidity. 'fhe study's authors, Richard P. Sazgent, MD, Robert Shepard, MD, and Stanton Glantz, PhD, reviewed the charts of patients dischazged with a primary or secondary diagnosis of acute myocazdial infarction (AMI) in Helena, Montana following implementation of a citywide ordinance banning smoking in public places. During the six months that the ordinance was in force, the number of hospital admissions for AMI dropped by 60 percent. "This new evidence adds to the already substantial body of evidence showing that secondhand smoke is dangerous," said M. Cass Wheeler, CEO of the American Heart Association. "Communities that want to see an immediate drop in heart disease can start by banning smoking in public places." Each year more than 440,000 Americans die from smoking related illnesses. About 35,000 of these are nonsmokers, who, as a result of environmental tobacco smoke, die from coronary heart disease. Wheeler added: "It is encouraging that a growing number of cities e.g. New York, Boston, Dallas -and states - e.g. California, Delaware, New York -are protecting their citizens from secondhand smoke. We would hope that all cities and states across the country would pay attention to the science and do the same to protect their citizens."