This month the Waco City Council voted for a weak city public smoking ordinance that fails to protect many workers from the health effects of secondhand smoke. A stronger, more comprehensive ordinance, supported by half the council, was set aside.

Dr. Bradford W. Holland of for the Smoke-Free Waco coalition and president-elect of the McLennan County Medical Society, put it best: “We believe that everyone deserves the right to breathe smoke-free air, no matter where they work. In voting for this weak compromise, the Waco City Council is saying that some of our citizens are more valuable and deserve more protection than others. That’s not right.

“We are disappointed that the citizens of Waco will not have the same public health protection that two-thirds of the nation benefit from now,” he said. “The smoke-free debate is not over in Waco. These laws are sweeping the nation, we are lagging behind, and one day soon we will need to revisit this issue. We cannot continue to allow nonsmoking workers to be exposed to the same diseases that smokers get. Nonsmokers deserve the right to breathe clean air.”

Twenty-seven states as well as 31 Texas cities have passed comprehensive public smoking laws, including Houston, Austin, Dallas, Abilene, Beaumont, College Station, Corpus Christi and Tyler. More than two-thirds of Americans live in smoke-free communities.

The 2006 U.S. Surgeon General’s Report, “The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke,” confirmed that there is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke. Last month, the federal government’s Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a new report confirming that smoke-free laws are effective at reducing the risks of heart attacks and heart disease due to exposure to secondhand smoke. The IOM report, “Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects Making Sense of the Evidence,” also concludes there is a causal relationship between secondhand smoke exposure and acute coronary events.

Secondhand smoke is a major health hazard, proven to cause lung cancer, heart disease, asthma and emphysema. Containing 4,000 chemicals and more than 60 carcinogens, it is responsible for an estimated 53,000 deaths in nonsmoking adults each year.

Smoke-Free Waco is a coalition of organizations concerned about the health effects of secondhand smoke. Our goal is to protect workers and the public from the cancer, heart disease and respiratory illnesses caused by secondhand smoke. Organizations that comprise Smoke-Free Waco include the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Lance Armstrong Foundation, March of Dimes, Curves, McLennan County Medical Society, and Waco Ear, Nose and Throat.

Marsha Fountain is a local registered nurse who works at The Oncology Group.