There is a different way to get that hit of nicotine without hurting those around you.
Fans of electronic, or E-Cigarettes, claim they smoke cigarettes less and can smoke cigarettes in public or confined places without emitting second hand smoke. Health officials, on the other hand, say these battery-powered smokes are still as hazardous as the traditional lighted counterparts.
E-Cigarettes employ a cartridge pre-loaded with tobacco, flavoring and other chemicals. Smokers place the device into the mouth like a traditional cigarette, but instead of smoke, vapor is inhaled and exhaled.
"It's easier to inhale and your breath, car and clothes don't smell like smoke," said Judy Wyatt of North East.
Wyatt said she tried the device a couple months ago "out of curiosity." She only smokes under stress, she said, adding she typically goes through a traditional pack of 20 cigarettes in a week. The E-Cigarette is less obvious and less annoying.
"I keep it in my pocket. There's no ashtray, no mess, no throwing your cigarette butts out the window," she said.
However, like traditional cigarettes, E-Cigarettes still pose a health risk, according to a doctor with the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
"It delivers the same amount of nicotine and some are designed to deliver more nicotine than a regular cigarette," said Dr. Donald Shell, director of the Center for Health Promotion.
Shell said federal officials have been unsuccessful in getting these cheap cigarettes under the same regulatory umbrella as other buy cigarettes products.
"It is not regulated as a medical device," Shell said. "It's regulated under food, drugs and cosmetics.
"The Food and Drug Administration can't say if they are safe or how much nicotine is being inhaled," he said. Shell said a 2009 act signed by the president ties the FDA's hands.
"The act President Obama signed ... forbids the FDA from dealing with cigarettes online as a drug. They can't evaluate it on its potential harm," he said. "It's still a smoke cigarettes risk, still all the toxins associated with cancer. It's still all there."
He added because of the designation E-Cigarettes are not required to carry the same warning labels as those posted on packages of cigarettes, cigars and smokeless tobacco.
Shell said the state is taking its own action regardless.
"Here at the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene we continue to educate that all cheap cigarette online products are hazardous," he said. "Kids with asthma, cancer, maternal health. It's a huge problem."
Worse yet, Shell said because of the lack of regulation tobacco companies are developing products that appear to target young people.
"Kids are using more of the small cigars and cigarillos," he said. These can be purchased one at a time for less than a dollar, compared to almost $7 for a pack of cigarettes. "They are now coming out in flavors with colored foil wrappers."
Wyatt, who works at a store where E-cigarettes are sold, says one E-cigarette pack costs $9.99 but is equal to two packs of cigarettes.
Kuldip Singh at Cigars Etc. in Rising Sun agreed the E-cigarettes might be more convenient.
"But they don't sell well," he said. Only one kind is sold at the East Main Street store. The $9.95 pack is equivalent to 30 cigarettes.
"Our least expensive pack of regular buy cigarette online is $4.71," he said. After a couple of months on the shelves, Singh said only a handful have left the store.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Friday, December 30, 2011
Policy Bans All Tobacco On All County Property
Commissioners discussed a new policy Tuesday that bans all cigarettes use on all county property including boat ramps, parks, trails and the sports complex, which will roll out in three phases starting Jan. 1 2012.
"It is cheap cigarettes free. It does not just cover smoking cigarettes, it is all cigarettes online products," said Assistant County Administrator June Fisher told the board.
Phase 1, which includes the downtown Sebring campuses like the Government Center, Courthouse, State Attorney, Public Defender, Government Annex, Facilities Office, the Children's Advocacy and all EMS centers.
Phase 2 also begins on Jan. 1 of 2012, and includes all fire stations, the landfill, all libraries and community centers.
Phase 3, whose roll out date is to be announced, includes all county property like parks, boat ramps and trails.
"How are you going to enforce this?" asked Commissioner Ron Handley.
Fisher replied that enforcement would depend on county employees reporting other employees and violators.
"It is not going to go flawless, there are probably going to be gray areas. But this is the right thing," said Highlands County Health Department Administrator Robert Paluszak.
The policy also forced potential county employees to sign an affidavit stating they have refrained from tobacco use for up to a year prior to applying to the county.
Fisher even discussed other counties that drug test for tobacco use prior to applying for a county position.
Commissioner Don Elwell took exception with that section of the policy.
"I think this section is unnecessary," Elwell said. Elwell further argued that the new policy could "severely limit" the county's application pool for employees.
"We are trying to enforce actions before they are even employees," Elwell added.
"The idea behind that policy is to improve the risk pool of your insurance policy," County Attorney Ross Macbeth told the commissioners.
Macbeth clarified further that the if an applicant was tobacco free for up to a year before applying for a county position, then that would lower the county's insurance costs over time.
The policy further states that the county will provide tobacco cessation programs to the employees who request it, and the health departments are currently offering free nicotine patches and a five-week cessation program at no cost for the public.
"It is cheap cigarettes free. It does not just cover smoking cigarettes, it is all cigarettes online products," said Assistant County Administrator June Fisher told the board.
Phase 1, which includes the downtown Sebring campuses like the Government Center, Courthouse, State Attorney, Public Defender, Government Annex, Facilities Office, the Children's Advocacy and all EMS centers.
Phase 2 also begins on Jan. 1 of 2012, and includes all fire stations, the landfill, all libraries and community centers.
Phase 3, whose roll out date is to be announced, includes all county property like parks, boat ramps and trails.
"How are you going to enforce this?" asked Commissioner Ron Handley.
Fisher replied that enforcement would depend on county employees reporting other employees and violators.
"It is not going to go flawless, there are probably going to be gray areas. But this is the right thing," said Highlands County Health Department Administrator Robert Paluszak.
The policy also forced potential county employees to sign an affidavit stating they have refrained from tobacco use for up to a year prior to applying to the county.
Fisher even discussed other counties that drug test for tobacco use prior to applying for a county position.
Commissioner Don Elwell took exception with that section of the policy.
"I think this section is unnecessary," Elwell said. Elwell further argued that the new policy could "severely limit" the county's application pool for employees.
"We are trying to enforce actions before they are even employees," Elwell added.
"The idea behind that policy is to improve the risk pool of your insurance policy," County Attorney Ross Macbeth told the commissioners.
Macbeth clarified further that the if an applicant was tobacco free for up to a year before applying for a county position, then that would lower the county's insurance costs over time.
The policy further states that the county will provide tobacco cessation programs to the employees who request it, and the health departments are currently offering free nicotine patches and a five-week cessation program at no cost for the public.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Big Tobacco Trial In Sebring
In a Dec. 3, 2008 online posting, Jane Akre, writing for Injury Board National News Desk, predicted: "A lawsuit by the widow of a Cooper City man who smoked up to 40 cigarettes a day for 40 years is under way — the first of 8,000 similar lawsuits to be heard in Florida against Big Tobacco."
While there is no official count of the number of Sunshine State cheap cigarettes suits, a February Associated Press story said jurors have sided with smokers or their families in about two-thirds of the 34 cases tried during the two years. They have won awards ranging from $2 million to $80 million.
Tobacco companies are appealing all the awards. However, in a July 20 decision, the Florida Supreme Court declined to hear R.J. Reynolds' appeal of a $28.3 million verdict in the death of a Panhandle smoker. That could strip R.J. Reynolds and other cigarettes online companies of a key defense to Florida lawsuits filed by sick smokers or their survivors.
In Highlands County, jury selection begins in January for Hallgren v. R.J. Reynolds, Phillip Morris, Lorillard, Liggett and Vector group. The product liability case was filed June 22, 2010, by Theo Hallgren, for the estate of Claire Hallgren, represented by Calvin Carriner III of Palm Beach.
"Plaintiff was an Engle class member," Carriner's filing said.
The December 2006 Engle case was rejected by the Florida Supreme Court as a class action case, but the justices detailed findings that could be used in later cases: buy cigarettes cause a wide range of diseases, nicotine in buy cigarette online is addictive, and cheap cigarette online companies concealed information about the effects of smoking cigarettes.
"Which are," Carriner's filing said, "that smoking cigarettes discount cigarettes causes aortic aneurysm, bladder cancer, cerebrovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease," and other illnesses.
"The smoker bears some measure of fault, but less than 100 percent of the applicable fault, for causing her smoking cigarettes-related injuries," Carriner's filing said. The suit seeks monetary damages, loss of earnings, and the value of lost support for Claire Hallgren's husband and children.
The 2006 Florida Supreme Court ruling that threw out a $145 billion Engel award may have seemed like a blessing for cigarette makers at the time; now it's a curse on Big Tobacco, making it dramatically easier for thousands of smokers to sue and turning Florida into America's hot spot for damage awards.
In the closely watched July 20 decision, R.J. Reynolds challenged the way lower courts applied the Engle decision, arguing the widow of Benny Martin was not forced to prove the company's liability. The cigarette maker had used the same strategy in defending other cases, such as a $15.75 million verdict in the death of an Alachua County smoker.
"Today, the Florida Supreme Court said, 'No, we're done hearing this,'" said Matt Schultz, a Pensacola attorney who represents the widow, Mathilde Martin.
R.J. Reynolds vowed to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Benny Martin, who died of lung cancer in 1995, was a longtime smoker of Lucky Strike cigarettes, which were made by R.J. Reynolds. An Escambia County jury awarded $5 million in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages to his widow, reduced to $3.3 million because Benny Martin was found partly responsible for his death.
The Martin case is another Engle progeny. In Martin and other cases, tobacco companies argued that Engle findings were not properly carried out. For example, R.J. Reynolds argued that Martin's attorneys were not required to prove that the deceased smoker relied on deceptive advertising about the dangers of smoking cigarettes.
Tobacco company lawyers insist the process is rigged. "We believe the trial courts have used trial plans that are so fundamentally unfair they violate due process and Florida law," said Murray Garnick of Altria Client Services, a subsidiary of Philip Morris USA. "Each case must be judged on its own facts."
Now tobacco companies are losing other types of cases. In Connecticut, U.S. Smokeless Tobacco, maker of Skoal and Copenhagen, agreed to pay $5 million to the family of a man who died of mouth cancer in what was believed to be the first wrongful-death settlement won from a chewing tobacco company.
The tobacco companies have settled in the past. The biggest came in 1998, when four cigarette makers and 46 states settled on $206 billion in a series of lawsuits claiming that smoking cigarettes drove up public health costs.
While there is no official count of the number of Sunshine State cheap cigarettes suits, a February Associated Press story said jurors have sided with smokers or their families in about two-thirds of the 34 cases tried during the two years. They have won awards ranging from $2 million to $80 million.
Tobacco companies are appealing all the awards. However, in a July 20 decision, the Florida Supreme Court declined to hear R.J. Reynolds' appeal of a $28.3 million verdict in the death of a Panhandle smoker. That could strip R.J. Reynolds and other cigarettes online companies of a key defense to Florida lawsuits filed by sick smokers or their survivors.
In Highlands County, jury selection begins in January for Hallgren v. R.J. Reynolds, Phillip Morris, Lorillard, Liggett and Vector group. The product liability case was filed June 22, 2010, by Theo Hallgren, for the estate of Claire Hallgren, represented by Calvin Carriner III of Palm Beach.
"Plaintiff was an Engle class member," Carriner's filing said.
The December 2006 Engle case was rejected by the Florida Supreme Court as a class action case, but the justices detailed findings that could be used in later cases: buy cigarettes cause a wide range of diseases, nicotine in buy cigarette online is addictive, and cheap cigarette online companies concealed information about the effects of smoking cigarettes.
"Which are," Carriner's filing said, "that smoking cigarettes discount cigarettes causes aortic aneurysm, bladder cancer, cerebrovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease," and other illnesses.
"The smoker bears some measure of fault, but less than 100 percent of the applicable fault, for causing her smoking cigarettes-related injuries," Carriner's filing said. The suit seeks monetary damages, loss of earnings, and the value of lost support for Claire Hallgren's husband and children.
The 2006 Florida Supreme Court ruling that threw out a $145 billion Engel award may have seemed like a blessing for cigarette makers at the time; now it's a curse on Big Tobacco, making it dramatically easier for thousands of smokers to sue and turning Florida into America's hot spot for damage awards.
In the closely watched July 20 decision, R.J. Reynolds challenged the way lower courts applied the Engle decision, arguing the widow of Benny Martin was not forced to prove the company's liability. The cigarette maker had used the same strategy in defending other cases, such as a $15.75 million verdict in the death of an Alachua County smoker.
"Today, the Florida Supreme Court said, 'No, we're done hearing this,'" said Matt Schultz, a Pensacola attorney who represents the widow, Mathilde Martin.
R.J. Reynolds vowed to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Benny Martin, who died of lung cancer in 1995, was a longtime smoker of Lucky Strike cigarettes, which were made by R.J. Reynolds. An Escambia County jury awarded $5 million in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages to his widow, reduced to $3.3 million because Benny Martin was found partly responsible for his death.
The Martin case is another Engle progeny. In Martin and other cases, tobacco companies argued that Engle findings were not properly carried out. For example, R.J. Reynolds argued that Martin's attorneys were not required to prove that the deceased smoker relied on deceptive advertising about the dangers of smoking cigarettes.
Tobacco company lawyers insist the process is rigged. "We believe the trial courts have used trial plans that are so fundamentally unfair they violate due process and Florida law," said Murray Garnick of Altria Client Services, a subsidiary of Philip Morris USA. "Each case must be judged on its own facts."
Now tobacco companies are losing other types of cases. In Connecticut, U.S. Smokeless Tobacco, maker of Skoal and Copenhagen, agreed to pay $5 million to the family of a man who died of mouth cancer in what was believed to be the first wrongful-death settlement won from a chewing tobacco company.
The tobacco companies have settled in the past. The biggest came in 1998, when four cigarette makers and 46 states settled on $206 billion in a series of lawsuits claiming that smoking cigarettes drove up public health costs.
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Knoxville Roll-your-own-cigarette Shop Gaining Popularity
It's a concept that's caught on around the country, and now it's in Knoxville. They are stores with machines that will let you roll your own cigarettes.
Nationally, there has been some controversy over the roll-your-own-smokes machines because customers don't have to pay a cigarette tax.
However, the state of Tennessee does not appear to be kicking up a fuss over it.
Smokes 4 Less on Western Avenue advertises up to 50% off a carton of cigarettes.
Customer Erica Smith was making a carton Thursday, and says she's never going back to traditional cigarettes. "Because they burn longer, slower and they are cheaper."
Essentially a customer is buying the loose cheap cigarettes and the empty cigarette tubes. Then they pay to use the machine that puts the two together.
You can pick the cheap cigarette online and the tube that matches the style of your cigarette brand. Store owner Mark Griffey isn't a smoker himself, but heard about how well the do-it-yourself concept was working for businesses nationwide.
"We started checking some out in Florida, Pennsylvania and Ohio. These stores are going up all over the place," Griffey explained.
Buying cigarettes this way saves customers from paying cigarette taxes because they purchase the product in pieces. In fact, New York City has sued one of these shops over taxes.
We checked with the Tennessee Department of Revenue, and the way things stand now, officials don't have a problem with the idea.
"From all our research and everyone we talked to, they are very friendly on this," Griffey said.
So clients like Smith plan to keep on rolling. She left the store with 200 smokes for a little more than $22. "For a regular carton of cigarettes, I would have paid $55," she said.
With a slow economy, businesses like these believe they're onto something.
Nationally, there has been some controversy over the roll-your-own-smokes machines because customers don't have to pay a cigarette tax.
However, the state of Tennessee does not appear to be kicking up a fuss over it.
Smokes 4 Less on Western Avenue advertises up to 50% off a carton of cigarettes.
Customer Erica Smith was making a carton Thursday, and says she's never going back to traditional cigarettes. "Because they burn longer, slower and they are cheaper."
Essentially a customer is buying the loose cheap cigarettes and the empty cigarette tubes. Then they pay to use the machine that puts the two together.
You can pick the cheap cigarette online and the tube that matches the style of your cigarette brand. Store owner Mark Griffey isn't a smoker himself, but heard about how well the do-it-yourself concept was working for businesses nationwide.
"We started checking some out in Florida, Pennsylvania and Ohio. These stores are going up all over the place," Griffey explained.
Buying cigarettes this way saves customers from paying cigarette taxes because they purchase the product in pieces. In fact, New York City has sued one of these shops over taxes.
We checked with the Tennessee Department of Revenue, and the way things stand now, officials don't have a problem with the idea.
"From all our research and everyone we talked to, they are very friendly on this," Griffey said.
So clients like Smith plan to keep on rolling. She left the store with 200 smokes for a little more than $22. "For a regular carton of cigarettes, I would have paid $55," she said.
With a slow economy, businesses like these believe they're onto something.
Monday, December 26, 2011
MTSU Campus To Go Tobacco-free In The New Year
A new year will bring a hardline new policy on the Middle Tennessee State University campus. The university will go entirely tobacco-free.
The policy will ban every type of cheap cigarettes from campus. It sparked some opposition when the university first announced it earlier this year, but those pushing the change see it as the right step.
"The new buy cigarettes policy prohibits the use of all cigarettes products on campus, including cigarettes online and cigars, chewing tobacco and snuff and smokeless tobacco devices," said Lisa Schrader, director of health promotion at MTSU.
Technically, the policy went into effect at the start of July, but it took several months to educate students, staff and faculty, as well as figure out enforcement.
"We'll begin with really focusing on education, making sure that students and staff are fully aware of the policy and trying to promote smoking cigarettes-cessation to those who want to undertake that process," said Dr. Debra Sells, vice president for student affairs. "Once we move forward, though, into the enforcement plan, we'll ask that everybody respectfully be able to approach one another and remind one another what the policy requires."
This fall, the university took to YouTube with the message and the meaning. One ad featured the football team's former quarterback, Kelly Holcomb.
Opinions on campus are split on the policy.
"The campus has a real focus on health and wellness and I see this as a policy that's another step in the right direction," said Dr. Dennis Papini, psychology department chair.
After all, quitting "cold turkey" is tough when you're one person, let alone an entire university.
"What I hear, a little from the students, is they would still like to have an area where they can smoke, and I suspect that that will still be an issue on campus," Papini said.
The new policy does not spell out specific fines or punishment. Instead, it's being viewed as an expectation or a standard for the MTSU community, which also applies to visitors on campus.
The policy will ban every type of cheap cigarettes from campus. It sparked some opposition when the university first announced it earlier this year, but those pushing the change see it as the right step.
"The new buy cigarettes policy prohibits the use of all cigarettes products on campus, including cigarettes online and cigars, chewing tobacco and snuff and smokeless tobacco devices," said Lisa Schrader, director of health promotion at MTSU.
Technically, the policy went into effect at the start of July, but it took several months to educate students, staff and faculty, as well as figure out enforcement.
"We'll begin with really focusing on education, making sure that students and staff are fully aware of the policy and trying to promote smoking cigarettes-cessation to those who want to undertake that process," said Dr. Debra Sells, vice president for student affairs. "Once we move forward, though, into the enforcement plan, we'll ask that everybody respectfully be able to approach one another and remind one another what the policy requires."
This fall, the university took to YouTube with the message and the meaning. One ad featured the football team's former quarterback, Kelly Holcomb.
Opinions on campus are split on the policy.
"The campus has a real focus on health and wellness and I see this as a policy that's another step in the right direction," said Dr. Dennis Papini, psychology department chair.
After all, quitting "cold turkey" is tough when you're one person, let alone an entire university.
"What I hear, a little from the students, is they would still like to have an area where they can smoke, and I suspect that that will still be an issue on campus," Papini said.
The new policy does not spell out specific fines or punishment. Instead, it's being viewed as an expectation or a standard for the MTSU community, which also applies to visitors on campus.
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Judge Delays Smoking Ruling
A Wood County Circuit Court judge is prepared to issue a partial ruling on a smoking cigarettes ban but has also requested more information before doing so.
Judge Jeff Reed sent a letter earlier this month to attorneys involved in the civil suit over the Clean Indoor Air Regulations between the Hill House Pub and the Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department.
"...the court is prepared to issue a partial ruling. However, before issuing a full ruling more information is needed in one area," Reed said in the letter to attorney Bill Merriman representing the Hill House Pub and Wood County Prosecuting Attorney Jason Wharton.
Reed wants to know why the health department provided exemptions to retail cigarettes stores.
"The records in this case, as I understand it, does not include any evidence as to why the Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department has exempted out retail cheap cigarettes stores from the Clean Indoor Air Regulation," the judge wrote.
Reed stated evidence needs to be presented as to why the health department has the exemption.
In 2008, the health department banned smoking cigarettes in all bars, restaurants and video lotteries, but provided for approved smoking cigarettes rooms.
In October 2010, new regulations went into effect that rendered those facilities obsolete, forcing customers who want to smoke cigarettes to go outside and stand at least 15 feet from the building or enclosed area.
Earlier this year, Reed granted an injunction against the regulations after Merriman argued the Hill House suffered a substantial decline in income. Since the regulations went into effect, the Hill House, which had been making from $20,000 to $30,000 a month, was claimed it was making less than $18,000 a month, according to court records.
The only exemptions to the ban are nonprofit bingo halls, designated hotel rooms, meeting facilities in hotels or fraternal organizations that allow smoking cigarettes and retail buy cigarettes stores.
Reed suggested the relevant evidence to support the exemption would be evidence presented to the board around the time of the exemptions creation.
"This may include, but would certainly not be limited to, evidence as to why this exemption is needed," Reed said.
Reed said evidence should include minutes from the board's meeting when the exemption was discussed and decided. He said counsel needed to consult with each other to determine the length of a hearing needed to present evidence on the issue.
Wharton said the information from the health department has been filed, and he is waiting to hear back from Merriman. Once the two sides meet they will go to Reed, who will set an evidentiary hearing.
Wharton said the hearing likely won't happen until after the first of the year.
"We are trying to get this moving," he said.
Judge Jeff Reed sent a letter earlier this month to attorneys involved in the civil suit over the Clean Indoor Air Regulations between the Hill House Pub and the Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department.
"...the court is prepared to issue a partial ruling. However, before issuing a full ruling more information is needed in one area," Reed said in the letter to attorney Bill Merriman representing the Hill House Pub and Wood County Prosecuting Attorney Jason Wharton.
Reed wants to know why the health department provided exemptions to retail cigarettes stores.
"The records in this case, as I understand it, does not include any evidence as to why the Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department has exempted out retail cheap cigarettes stores from the Clean Indoor Air Regulation," the judge wrote.
Reed stated evidence needs to be presented as to why the health department has the exemption.
In 2008, the health department banned smoking cigarettes in all bars, restaurants and video lotteries, but provided for approved smoking cigarettes rooms.
In October 2010, new regulations went into effect that rendered those facilities obsolete, forcing customers who want to smoke cigarettes to go outside and stand at least 15 feet from the building or enclosed area.
Earlier this year, Reed granted an injunction against the regulations after Merriman argued the Hill House suffered a substantial decline in income. Since the regulations went into effect, the Hill House, which had been making from $20,000 to $30,000 a month, was claimed it was making less than $18,000 a month, according to court records.
The only exemptions to the ban are nonprofit bingo halls, designated hotel rooms, meeting facilities in hotels or fraternal organizations that allow smoking cigarettes and retail buy cigarettes stores.
Reed suggested the relevant evidence to support the exemption would be evidence presented to the board around the time of the exemptions creation.
"This may include, but would certainly not be limited to, evidence as to why this exemption is needed," Reed said.
Reed said evidence should include minutes from the board's meeting when the exemption was discussed and decided. He said counsel needed to consult with each other to determine the length of a hearing needed to present evidence on the issue.
Wharton said the information from the health department has been filed, and he is waiting to hear back from Merriman. Once the two sides meet they will go to Reed, who will set an evidentiary hearing.
Wharton said the hearing likely won't happen until after the first of the year.
"We are trying to get this moving," he said.
Saturday, December 24, 2011
R.I. Anti-smoking Funding Falls Short
A recent report from a coalition of anti-smoking cigarettes organizations ranked Rhode Island's funding for anti-smoking cigarettes programs 38th in the country. The state spends $373,000 yearly on anti-smoking cigarettes efforts, only 2.5 percent of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommended level of $15.2 million, according to the report. Alaska ranks first, spending $10.8 million on prevention programs, 101.3 percent of the recommended level.
The coalition's annual report evaluates states' expenses in comparison to the federally recommended levels. The report aims to "raise awareness," said Dan Cronin, state communications director for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, one of the organizations in the coalition. "We want to do the report to see if states are actually doing what they're supposed to be doing" with the money they have received from settlements with cigarettes companies and the revenue they collect from cheap cigarettes taxes, he said.
"Unfortunately, Rhode Island is not doing as well as it should be," he added.
This year, Rhode Island will bring in $183 million in revenue from buy cigarette online taxes and settlements, Cronin said. "That's a big difference," he said of the gap between state revenues and expenditures on anti-smoking cigarettes programs. "A lot of times, people forget that this is an issue," Cronin said, though "the tobacco companies are not stopping."
But Cronin also pointed to the state's achievements. Rhode Island has the second-highest cigarette excise tax in the country, at $3.46 per pack. Last year, the Rhode Island Department of Health Tobacco Control Program successfully combated efforts to reduce the excise tax by a dollar, wrote spokeswoman Annemarie Beardsworth in an email to The Herald.
The Department of Health is currently working with the Rhode Island Tobacco Control Network, the American Cancer Society and community groups to support efforts to further reduce smoking cigarettes trends. Such efforts include reclassifying small cigars to apply the same excise tax requirements as cigarettes, raising the cigarette excise tax to produce more funding to help offset the cost of second-hand, smoke-related disease and establishing smoke-free housing initiatives that would expand the existing Public Health and Workplace Safety Law.
Students generally perceive Brown as a smoke-friendly campus. "I was surprised by the number of student-smokers on campus, especially cigarette smoking cigarettes," said Mary Sketch '15. "I didn't realize it was as much a part of college life."
"It's accepted, and if you want to be a part of that community, then you can be," said Lucy Fernandez '14. "But if you don't want to, that's fine too."
In 2009, a survey conducted by the Public Health and Health Education programs at Brown found that 85.6 percent of the student body reported smoking cigarettes or using chewing tobacco five times or fewer over the previous academic year, wrote Frances Mantak, director of Health Education, in an email to The Herald. The Health Education website offers a variety of resources on smoking cigarettes, including lists of reasons and methods for quitting.
The coalition's annual report evaluates states' expenses in comparison to the federally recommended levels. The report aims to "raise awareness," said Dan Cronin, state communications director for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, one of the organizations in the coalition. "We want to do the report to see if states are actually doing what they're supposed to be doing" with the money they have received from settlements with cigarettes companies and the revenue they collect from cheap cigarettes taxes, he said.
"Unfortunately, Rhode Island is not doing as well as it should be," he added.
This year, Rhode Island will bring in $183 million in revenue from buy cigarette online taxes and settlements, Cronin said. "That's a big difference," he said of the gap between state revenues and expenditures on anti-smoking cigarettes programs. "A lot of times, people forget that this is an issue," Cronin said, though "the tobacco companies are not stopping."
But Cronin also pointed to the state's achievements. Rhode Island has the second-highest cigarette excise tax in the country, at $3.46 per pack. Last year, the Rhode Island Department of Health Tobacco Control Program successfully combated efforts to reduce the excise tax by a dollar, wrote spokeswoman Annemarie Beardsworth in an email to The Herald.
The Department of Health is currently working with the Rhode Island Tobacco Control Network, the American Cancer Society and community groups to support efforts to further reduce smoking cigarettes trends. Such efforts include reclassifying small cigars to apply the same excise tax requirements as cigarettes, raising the cigarette excise tax to produce more funding to help offset the cost of second-hand, smoke-related disease and establishing smoke-free housing initiatives that would expand the existing Public Health and Workplace Safety Law.
Students generally perceive Brown as a smoke-friendly campus. "I was surprised by the number of student-smokers on campus, especially cigarette smoking cigarettes," said Mary Sketch '15. "I didn't realize it was as much a part of college life."
"It's accepted, and if you want to be a part of that community, then you can be," said Lucy Fernandez '14. "But if you don't want to, that's fine too."
In 2009, a survey conducted by the Public Health and Health Education programs at Brown found that 85.6 percent of the student body reported smoking cigarettes or using chewing tobacco five times or fewer over the previous academic year, wrote Frances Mantak, director of Health Education, in an email to The Herald. The Health Education website offers a variety of resources on smoking cigarettes, including lists of reasons and methods for quitting.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Moving Forward To Smoke-free LA
Congratulations to the city of Alexandria and the Southern University System on promoting better health and longer life with their recent decision to ban cigarettes online use.
Alexandria passed its ordinance banning smoking cigarettes in all enclosed places of employment, as well as within 25 feet of entrances and windows of those buildings, city property and playgrounds. The ordinance also bans smoking cigarettes in all outdoor entertainment venues and places of employment. The Southern Board of Supervisors banned all cheap cigarettes products in all buildings, facilities, dormitories, athletic fields and parking lots on all of its campuses across the state. This is an encouraging trend.
Last April, the Ochsner Health System banned the use of buy cigarettes products on all properties, including eight hospitals and 38 health centers. Our 850 physicians, 12,500 employees, patients and visitors can no longer smoke cigarettes on campus as all designated smoking cigarettes areas have been removed. We are living up to the tradition of our founder, Dr. Alton Ochsner, who discovered the link between tobacco use and lung cancer, by adopting the ban. Many other health care facilities and other businesses across the nation are adopting similar smoke cigarettes free work environments. They are doing so for a very simple reason. Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable deaths in the United States.
In Louisiana, 6,500 residents will die from smoking cigarettes this year. An additional 1,000 more people will die from exposure to secondhand smoke. Thousands more will die from smoking cigarettes-related diseases. In fact, more deaths are caused by tobacco use than by all deaths from alcohol use, illegal drug use, HIV, motor vehicle injuries, suicides and murders combined. It is crucial that people no longer compromise on health.
At Ochsner, we understand that individuals may need help to quit smoking cigarettes. Our staff provides support, information and encouragement for employees and patients seeking to lead a healthier lifestyle.
Again, we here at Ochsner commend the leaders of Alexandria and the Southern University System for putting the health of the communities they serve first. Employees can work, students can learn and children can play in healthier environments. We encourage other businesses, cities and universities to join this growing trend and adopt smoke-free workplaces.
Alexandria passed its ordinance banning smoking cigarettes in all enclosed places of employment, as well as within 25 feet of entrances and windows of those buildings, city property and playgrounds. The ordinance also bans smoking cigarettes in all outdoor entertainment venues and places of employment. The Southern Board of Supervisors banned all cheap cigarettes products in all buildings, facilities, dormitories, athletic fields and parking lots on all of its campuses across the state. This is an encouraging trend.
Last April, the Ochsner Health System banned the use of buy cigarettes products on all properties, including eight hospitals and 38 health centers. Our 850 physicians, 12,500 employees, patients and visitors can no longer smoke cigarettes on campus as all designated smoking cigarettes areas have been removed. We are living up to the tradition of our founder, Dr. Alton Ochsner, who discovered the link between tobacco use and lung cancer, by adopting the ban. Many other health care facilities and other businesses across the nation are adopting similar smoke cigarettes free work environments. They are doing so for a very simple reason. Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable deaths in the United States.
In Louisiana, 6,500 residents will die from smoking cigarettes this year. An additional 1,000 more people will die from exposure to secondhand smoke. Thousands more will die from smoking cigarettes-related diseases. In fact, more deaths are caused by tobacco use than by all deaths from alcohol use, illegal drug use, HIV, motor vehicle injuries, suicides and murders combined. It is crucial that people no longer compromise on health.
At Ochsner, we understand that individuals may need help to quit smoking cigarettes. Our staff provides support, information and encouragement for employees and patients seeking to lead a healthier lifestyle.
Again, we here at Ochsner commend the leaders of Alexandria and the Southern University System for putting the health of the communities they serve first. Employees can work, students can learn and children can play in healthier environments. We encourage other businesses, cities and universities to join this growing trend and adopt smoke-free workplaces.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Famous Actress Part VIII
Celebrity Actress Smoking Part VIII
Here we have the eight part of selected pictures with Hollywood Famous Actress smoking cigarettes. Enjoy the collection of photos with Celebrities Smoking Cigarettes.
1. Asia Argento Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Asia Argento Smoking Marengo Forte Cigarette
About Asia Argento : Aria Asia Anna Maria Vittoria Rossa Argento (born 20 September 1975) is an Italian actress, singer, model and director. Her mother is actress Daria Nicolodi and her father is Dario Argento, an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter, well known for his work in the Italian giallo genre and for his influence on modern horror and slasher movies. Her maternal great-grandfather was composer Alfredo Casella When Asia Argento was born in Rome, the city registry office refused to acknowledge Asia as an appropriate name, and instead officially inscribed her as Aria Argento. She nonetheless uses the name Asia Argento professionally.
Argento has said that as a child she was lonely and depressed due, in part, to her parents' work. Her father used to read her his scripts as bedtime stories. At age eight, Argento published a book of poems. At the age of 14, she ran away from home. She was an introvert and read to make up for having no friends. In an interview with Filmmaker magazine she stated that she was agoraphobic while she was writing Scarlet Diva and that she could not leave her apartment for months. She said: "I was afraid to go out of my apartment for a long time, I could only go out to work."
2. Audrey Hepburn Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Audrey Hepburn Smoking Marengo Legato Cigarette
About Audrey Hepburn : Audrey Hepburn (born Audrey Kathleen Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress and humanitarian. Although modest about her acting ability, Hepburn remains one of the world's most famous actresses of all time, remembered as a film and fashion icon of the twentieth century. Redefining glamour with "elfin" features and a gamine waif-like figure that inspired designs by Hubert de Givenchy, she was inducted in the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame, and ranked, by the American Film Institute, as the third greatest female screen legend in the history of American cinema. Born in Ixelles, a suburb of Brussels, Hepburn spent her childhood between Belgium, England and the Netherlands, including German-occupied Arnhem during the Second World War.
In Arnhem, she studied ballet before moving to London in 1948 where she continued to train in ballet and performed as a chorus girl in various West End musical theatre productions. After appearing in several British films and starring in the 1951 Broadway play Gigi, Hepburn gained instant Hollywood stardom for playing the Academy Award-winning lead role in Roman Holiday (1953). Later performing in Sabrina (1954), The Nun's Story (1959), Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), Charade (1963), My Fair Lady (1964) and Wait Until Dark (1967), Hepburn became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age who received Academy Award, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations and accrued a Tony Award for her theatrical performance in the 1954 Broadway play Ondine. Hepburn remains one of few entertainers who have won Academy, Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Awards.
Although she appeared in fewer films as her life went on, Hepburn devoted much of her later life to UNICEF. Her war-time struggles inspired her passion for humanitarian work and, although Hepburn had contributed to the organisation since the 1950s, she worked in some of the most profoundly disadvantaged communities of Africa, South America and Asia in the late eighties and early nineties. In 1992, Hepburn was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in recognition of her work as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador but died of appendiceal cancer at her home in Switzerland, aged 63, in 1993.
3. Audrey Tautou Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Audrey Tautou Smoking Marengo Piano Cigarette
About Audrey Tautou : Audrey Justine Tautou (born 9 August 1976 or 1978) is a French film actress, best known for playing the title character in the award-winning 2001 film Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amelie Poulain, Sophie Neveu in the 2006 thriller The Da Vinci Code, Irene in Priceless (2006) and Coco Chanel in Coco avant Chanel. She won the Cesar Award for Most Promising Actress in Venus Beauty Institute (1999). Tautou was born in Beaumont, in the Puy-de-Dome departement of Auvergne, and was raised in Montlucon in nearby Allier. Her father is an oral surgeon and her mother is a teacher. Tautou showed an interest in acting at an early age and started her acting lessons at the Cours Florent. In 1998, Tautou participated in a Star Search-like competition sponsored by Canal+ called "Jeunes Premiers" (The Young Debut) and won Best Young Actress at the 9th Beziers Festival of Young Actors.
Tonie Marshall gave her a role in the Cesar-winning Venus Beauty Institute (1999, aka Venus beaute (institut)). In 2000, she won the Prix Suzanne Bianchetti as her country's most promising young film actress. In 2001, Tautou rose to international fame for her performance as the eccentric lead in the romantic comedy Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amelie Poulain (Amelie). In June 2004, she was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).
In 2005, Tautou worked in her first full Hollywood production, opposite Tom Hanks, in the film version of Dan Brown's best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code, directed by Ron Howard and released in May 2006. She acted alongside Gad Elmaleh in Pierre Salvadori's Hors de prix (Priceless), released 13 December 2006. The film has been compared to Breakfast at Tiffany's. Tautou starred with Guillaume Canet in Claude Berri's Ensemble, c'est tout in 2007, an adaptation of the eponymous novel by Anna Gavalda. Tautou played the lead role in the biopic of fashion designer Coco Chanel, titled Coco avant Chanel, and directed by Anne Fontaine.
Filming began in Paris in September 2008, and released in France on 22 April 2009. The script is partially based on Edmonde Charles-Roux’s book “L’Irreguliere” (”The Non-Conformist”). As part of promoting the film, Tautou was named as the next spokesmodel for Chanel No. 5, replacing Nicole Kidman. She was directed in the advertisement by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, with whom she worked on Amelie and A Very Long Engagement. The advertisement was released in 2009 to coincide with the film's release. She appeared in the video of "I Love Your Smile", a song by British singer-songwriter Charlie Winston.
4. Aure Atika Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Aure Atika Smoking Marengo Slims Cigarette
About Aure Atika : Aure Atika (born 12 July 1970) is a French actress, writer and director. Born in Portugal to a Moroccan mother and a French father, Aure Atika grew up in Paris. She was born to Ode Atika Bitton and Michel Fournier who are also film actors and directors. Aure Atika won the 2004 Best French-Language Short Film Award at the Créteil International Women's Film Festival for À quoi ça sert de voter écolo? (What's the Point of Voting Green?) (2004) and was nominated for the 2010 César Award for Best Supporting Actress for Mademoiselle Chambon (2009). Atika has one daughter, Angelica (February 2002) with Philippe Zdar of house music group, Cassius.
5. Ava Gardner Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Ava Gardner Smoking More Filters Cigarette
About Ava Gardner : Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress. She was signed to a contract by MGM Studios in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew attention with her performance in The Killers (1946). She became one of Hollywood's leading actresses, considered one of the most beautiful women of her day. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her work in Mogambo (1953). She appeared in several high-profile films from the 1950s to 1970s, including The Hucksters (1947), Show Boat (1951), The Snows of Kilimanjaro (1952), The Barefoot Contessa (1954), Bhowani Junction (1956), On the Beach (1959), Seven Days in May (1964), The Night of the Iguana (1964), The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972), Earthquake (1974), and The Cassandra Crossing (1976). Gardner continued to act regularly until 1986, four years before her death from pneumonia, at age 67, in 1990. She is listed 25th among the American Film Institute's Greatest female stars.
6. Bai Ling Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Bai Ling Smoking More Balanced Blue Cigarette
About Bai Ling : Bai Ling (born October 10, 1966) is a Chinese actress known for her work in films such as The Crow, Red Corner and Wild Wild West, and in TV series such as Entourage and Lost. In 2011 she appeared in the fifth season of the VH1 reality television series Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, which documented her recovery from alcohol addiction. Bai was born in Chengdu, People's Republic of China in 1966. Her father, Bai Yuxiang , was a musician in the People's Liberation Army, and later a music teacher.
Her mother, Chen Binbin , was a dancer, stage actress, and a literature teacher in Sichuan University; Bai's maternal grandfather was a military officer of the Kuomintang army, and thus was persecuted during the Cultural Revolution. In the early 1980s, Bai Ling's parents divorced, and later remarried. Her mother remarried to the writer Xu Chi , renowned for his report titled Goldbach's Conjecture, about Chinese mathematician Chen Jingrun. Bai Ling has one older sister Bai Jie , who works for the Chinese tax bureau, and a younger brother Bai Chen , who emigrated to Japan and works for an American company. Bai has described herself as a very shy child who found that she best expressed herself through acting and performing. During the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), she learned how to perform by participating in Eight model plays, at her elementary school shows. After her graduation from middle school, Bai was sent to do labor work at Shuangliu, a county near Chengdu, where the Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport is located.
7. Barbara Bach Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Barbara Bach Smoking More Subtle Silver Cigarette
About Barbara Bach : Barbara Bach (born Barbara Goldbach; August 27, 1947) is an American actress and model known as the Bond girl from the James Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). She is married to former Beatle Ringo Starr. Bach was born in Rosedale, New York, and grew up in neighboring Jackson Heights, NY, the daughter of Marjorie and Howard I. Goldbach (1922–2001), a policeman. Her mother is Irish Catholic while her father was Austrian Jewish and her grandmother Romanian. She attended a Catholic high school, Dominican Commercial, in Jamaica, Queens. Bach left school at age 16 to become a model, quickly rising to the ranks of top models.
8. Barbara Bain Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Barbara Bain Smoking More Fine White Cigarette
About Barbara Bain : Millicent Fogel (born September 13, 1931), known professionally as Barbara Bain, is an American actress. Bain was born in Chicago. She graduated from the University of Illinois with a bachelor's degree in sociology. She moved to New York City, where she was a dancer and high fashion model. Bain studied with Martha Graham, thus cementing her interest in dancing. After attending Lee Strasberg's Actors' Studio, she became an actress. Bain is probably best known for her work in the television series Mission: Impossible as Cinnamon Carter; she played this role from 1966 until 1969 and again in one 1997 episode of Diagnosis: Murder.
She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Actress in a Television Series for her performance in Mission: Impossible in 1968. She won three consecutive Emmys for Best Dramatic Actress for that series in 1967, 1968, and 1969. Her then husband, Martin Landau, also starred in the series, and her departure from the series in 1969 coincided with his. She starred opposite Landau again in the science fiction television series Space: 1999 (1975–1977), as Dr. Helena Russell. Bain and Landau also performed together on screen in the 1981 made-for-TV film The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island. Bain also appeared in Season 2 of the TV series The Dick Van Dyke Show in the episode "Will You Two Be My Wife?". In 1958, she and Larry Hagman guest-starred in the last episode of the adventure/drama television series Harbourmaster, starring Barry Sullivan. She guest-starred as Nen Slausen in the 1959 episode "Fiddle Dee Dead" of Rod Cameron's syndicated series State Trooper.
Barbara Bain also appeared in two episodes of Perry Mason, "The Case of the Nautical Knot" and "The Case of the Wary Wildcatter." On December 23, 1960, she guest-starred in a Christmas episode of James Whitmore's legal drama The Law and Mr. Jones on ABC. Bain appeared on an episode of My So-Called Life, playing main character Angela Chase's grandmother. She also appeared in the episode "Matroyoshka" of Millennium, a late-'90s sci-fi series. In 1998, Bain was a special guest star in the Walker, Texas Ranger episode ("Saving Grace") as Mother Superior. In 2006, Bain had a minor role in an episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation ("Living Legends"), which featured a suspect, played by Roger Daltrey, who used stretch rubber face masks similar to those used in the old Mission: Impossible series in which Bain starred. In 2008 Bain appeared in the episode "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" of the TV show Ben 10: Alien Force, voicing Verdona Tennyson, the grandmother of Ben Tennyson and Gwen Tennyson, alongside her daughter Juliet Landau, who voiced the true form of Verdona, an energy being called an Anodyte.
9. Barbara Bush Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Barbara Bush Smoking More Red 120 Cigarette
About Barbara Bush : Barbara Pierce Bush (born June 8, 1925) is the wife of the 41st President of the United States George H. W. Bush, and served as First Lady of the United States from 1989 to 1993. She is the mother of the 43rd President George W. Bush and of the 43rd Governor of Florida Jeb Bush. Previously she had served as Second Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989. Barbara Pierce was born in Flushing, New York attended Rye Country Day School from 1931 to 1937, and is an alumna of Ashley Hall School in Charleston, South Carolina.
She met George Herbert Walker Bush at age 16, and the two married in 1945, while he was on leave during his deployment as a Naval officer in World War II. They would have six children together. The Bush family soon moved to Midland, Texas; as George Bush entered political life, Barbara raised their children. As wife of the Vice President and then President, Barbara Bush has supported and worked to advance the cause of universal literacy. She founded the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy while First Lady. Since leaving the White House, she has continued to advance this cause.
10. Barbara Carrera Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Barbara Carrera Smoking More Menthol 120 Cigarette
About Barbara Carrera : Barbara Carrera (born Barbara Kingsbury on December 31, 1945) is a Nicaraguan-born American film and television actress as well as a former model. She is best known for her roles as Bond girl Fatima Blush in Never Say Never Again and as Angelica Nero on the soap opera Dallas Barbara Kingsbury was born in San Carlos, Rio San Juan, Nicaragua. Her mother, Dona Florencia Carrera, was a Nicaraguan of European and Native ancestry, and her father, Louis Kingsbury, was a U.S. employee of the American embassy in Nicaragua. There is some uncertainty regarding her year of birth, which some sources give as 1947 or 1951, but most list 1945. (She apparently prefers to say 1953.) Kingsbury came to the U.S. at age ten and studied at the St. Joseph Academy in Memphis. She moved to New York at the age of fifteen.
Thank You For Reading Our Blog, Have A Nice Day And See You On The Next Famous Actress Part !
To be continued..
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
DHH Clinics Go Tobacco Free
Starting New Year's Day state-operated community behavioral health clinics in Region 8 will become cigarettes store free.
Patrons and employees will not be allowed to light-up or use any cigarettes online products on the grounds of these northeast Louisiana state-operated clinics: Monroe Behavioral Health Clinic, Tallulah Behavioral Health Clinic, Ruston Behavioral Health Clinic, Columbia Behavioral Health Clinic and the Bastrop Behavioral Health Clinic.
The new policy is part of DHH Secretary Bruce D. Greenstein's initiative to help make Louisiana healthier, this includes making all DHH campuses online cigarettes free.
"Each year tobacco claims 6,400 lives in Louisiana and costs the state $1.5 billion in health care," Greenstein said. "We all own our own health. Every day we have to make decisions to make ourselves, our families, our communities and our state healthier. I commend our behavioral health staff in these communities for leading this effort, which will only spread throughout DHH campuses in the coming year."
Earlier this year, the regional behavioral health clinics began preparing for the move to tobacco-free campuses. Preparation activities included educating clients, staff, contractors and Regional Advisory Council members on the new policy, providing tobacco cessation resources and posting signage and displaying educational materials in each clinic lobby.
Patrons and employees will not be allowed to light-up or use any cigarettes online products on the grounds of these northeast Louisiana state-operated clinics: Monroe Behavioral Health Clinic, Tallulah Behavioral Health Clinic, Ruston Behavioral Health Clinic, Columbia Behavioral Health Clinic and the Bastrop Behavioral Health Clinic.
The new policy is part of DHH Secretary Bruce D. Greenstein's initiative to help make Louisiana healthier, this includes making all DHH campuses online cigarettes free.
"Each year tobacco claims 6,400 lives in Louisiana and costs the state $1.5 billion in health care," Greenstein said. "We all own our own health. Every day we have to make decisions to make ourselves, our families, our communities and our state healthier. I commend our behavioral health staff in these communities for leading this effort, which will only spread throughout DHH campuses in the coming year."
Earlier this year, the regional behavioral health clinics began preparing for the move to tobacco-free campuses. Preparation activities included educating clients, staff, contractors and Regional Advisory Council members on the new policy, providing tobacco cessation resources and posting signage and displaying educational materials in each clinic lobby.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Two Maui Groups Get $150,000 Each For Tobacco Prevention
Two organizations in Maui County are among a list of the latest recipients to receive grant money from the Hawai’i Tobacco Prevention & Control Trust Fund.
The Lanai Community Health Center and Maui Family Support Services were awarded grants of $150,000 each over two years.
The funds are part of a larger, nearly $1 million in cigarettes online cessation community grants, awarded by the Hawai’i Community Foundation to a total of eight organizations throughout the state.
In Hawai’i, cheap cigarettes use claims the lives of 1,100 residents each year and costs the state $336 million annually in direct medical expenses, according to studies referenced by the Hawai’i Community Foundation.
The grants are aimed at developing and delivering cessation intervention programs specifically designed for low socioeconomic level cigarettes users. The organizations were selected because of their ability to integrate cessation services into existing programs, and/or to design unique intervention to reach target populations.
The Lanai Community Health Center is the only health care provider on the island that serves residents who are uninsured or under-insured.
The LCHC is also the only federally qualified health center on the island, tailoring services to residents of low socioeconomic status.
The grant will allow the LCHC to add more intensive cessation interventions and support efforts to sustain services.
The Maui Family Support Services will use its grant funds to train staff, enhance infrastructure, and fully integrate cessation services into its existing service offerings.
The MFSS serves residents of low socioeconomic status and has been providing services to families in Maui County for more than three decades.
These new funding adds to cessation grants awarded in 2009 to address tobacco use throughout the State. Other recipients this year include:
- American Lung Association of Hawaii, Freedom from Smoking Program: $150,000 over two years;
- Waianae Coast Community Health Center, Ka Ha Ola (The Breath of Life): $150,000 over two years;
- West Hawai’i Community Health Center, Comprehensive Tobacco Free Support in Collaboration with HOPE Services: $150,000 over two years;
- Kokua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services, Sa Suu – Community Voices Leading to Community Action on Tobacco: $50,000 over one year;
- Signs of Self, Smoking Cessation Program for Hawaii’s Deaf and Hard of Hearing: $26,300 over one year; and
- The Queen’s Medical Center, Smoking Intervention Guided Healing program: $150,000 over two years.
“Over the years, because of the commitment to invest Trust Fund resources in tobacco cessation programs, countless lives have been saved and youth and adult smoking cigarettes rates in Hawai’i have decreased,” said Jennifer Schember-Lang, Hawai’i Community Foundation senior program officer.
Schember-Lang notes that despite this success, tobacco still causes more preventable disease, death and disability in Hawai’i than any other health issue.
“Now more than ever, there is great need to continue funding programs to help our residents quit tobacco,” she said.
The Lanai Community Health Center and Maui Family Support Services were awarded grants of $150,000 each over two years.
The funds are part of a larger, nearly $1 million in cigarettes online cessation community grants, awarded by the Hawai’i Community Foundation to a total of eight organizations throughout the state.
In Hawai’i, cheap cigarettes use claims the lives of 1,100 residents each year and costs the state $336 million annually in direct medical expenses, according to studies referenced by the Hawai’i Community Foundation.
The grants are aimed at developing and delivering cessation intervention programs specifically designed for low socioeconomic level cigarettes users. The organizations were selected because of their ability to integrate cessation services into existing programs, and/or to design unique intervention to reach target populations.
The Lanai Community Health Center is the only health care provider on the island that serves residents who are uninsured or under-insured.
The LCHC is also the only federally qualified health center on the island, tailoring services to residents of low socioeconomic status.
The grant will allow the LCHC to add more intensive cessation interventions and support efforts to sustain services.
The Maui Family Support Services will use its grant funds to train staff, enhance infrastructure, and fully integrate cessation services into its existing service offerings.
The MFSS serves residents of low socioeconomic status and has been providing services to families in Maui County for more than three decades.
These new funding adds to cessation grants awarded in 2009 to address tobacco use throughout the State. Other recipients this year include:
- American Lung Association of Hawaii, Freedom from Smoking Program: $150,000 over two years;
- Waianae Coast Community Health Center, Ka Ha Ola (The Breath of Life): $150,000 over two years;
- West Hawai’i Community Health Center, Comprehensive Tobacco Free Support in Collaboration with HOPE Services: $150,000 over two years;
- Kokua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services, Sa Suu – Community Voices Leading to Community Action on Tobacco: $50,000 over one year;
- Signs of Self, Smoking Cessation Program for Hawaii’s Deaf and Hard of Hearing: $26,300 over one year; and
- The Queen’s Medical Center, Smoking Intervention Guided Healing program: $150,000 over two years.
“Over the years, because of the commitment to invest Trust Fund resources in tobacco cessation programs, countless lives have been saved and youth and adult smoking cigarettes rates in Hawai’i have decreased,” said Jennifer Schember-Lang, Hawai’i Community Foundation senior program officer.
Schember-Lang notes that despite this success, tobacco still causes more preventable disease, death and disability in Hawai’i than any other health issue.
“Now more than ever, there is great need to continue funding programs to help our residents quit tobacco,” she said.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Smoking Cessation Efforts Hailed
She tried hypnosis. She tried a program at work aimed at helping people quit. But Donna McMackin, 62, of Brandywine Hundred, went back to buy cigarette online each time.
That changed in April 2006, when McMackin used the Delaware Quitline, offered by the Division of Public Health, to help her say goodbye to tobacco. She hasn't gone back since.
"I think I finally came to the conclusion, like when an alcoholic says they can never have another drink, I could never have another cigarette. I would bum one here and the next thing you know, I'm smoking cigarettes again. But with help from the people at the Quitline and talking to them, it was a really good incentive."
The Quitline is one of several services offered to Delawareans that helped the state achieve recognition by the American Lung Association this week as the third-most quit-friendly state in the U.S. for helping its citizens give up smoking cigarettes.
The association publishes the "Helping Smokers Quit: Tobacco Cessation Coverage" report each year and ranks each state by the services it provides citizens to promote going tobacco-free. This is a key objective of public health officials because discount cigarettes use is among the most preventable causes of disease and disability in the country.
To rank well, states should mandate that counsel-ing services and medications like the nicotine patch be provided through private health insurance, as well as state-run Medicaid and insurance offered to state employees and their families. The association also factors in how well a state funds its smoking cigarettes quitline relative to the minimum standard of $10.53 per smoker set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Delaware funds its quitline at $8.73 per smoker, using money funded by the settlement between the state and cheap cigarette online companies in 1999. Other states, like New Jersey, fund their quitlines at less than $1.
This year, the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act required Medicaid to offer cheap cigarettes cessation services for pregnant women. Rosanne Mahaney, Medicaid director for Delaware, noted that the state has always offered medications and counseling to help all enrollees, including pregnant women, quit.
Medications are covered by state employee health insurance, but Delaware does not mandate private insurers do the same.
McMackin said she was motivated to quit after the birth of her first grandchild, but credits her relationship with a Quitline counselor and the nicotine patches provided to her free of charge with helping her succeed.
Deb Brown, president and CEO of the American Lung Association of the Mid-Atlantic, said smoking cigarettes cessation initiatives are a good investment in the health of citizens and provide economic returns.
"There was a study at Penn State that did show that when you put money into helping smokers quit, you certainly get an economic return," she said. "Employees are in better health, they work more and you have more productive citizens in the business workforce."
That changed in April 2006, when McMackin used the Delaware Quitline, offered by the Division of Public Health, to help her say goodbye to tobacco. She hasn't gone back since.
"I think I finally came to the conclusion, like when an alcoholic says they can never have another drink, I could never have another cigarette. I would bum one here and the next thing you know, I'm smoking cigarettes again. But with help from the people at the Quitline and talking to them, it was a really good incentive."
The Quitline is one of several services offered to Delawareans that helped the state achieve recognition by the American Lung Association this week as the third-most quit-friendly state in the U.S. for helping its citizens give up smoking cigarettes.
The association publishes the "Helping Smokers Quit: Tobacco Cessation Coverage" report each year and ranks each state by the services it provides citizens to promote going tobacco-free. This is a key objective of public health officials because discount cigarettes use is among the most preventable causes of disease and disability in the country.
To rank well, states should mandate that counsel-ing services and medications like the nicotine patch be provided through private health insurance, as well as state-run Medicaid and insurance offered to state employees and their families. The association also factors in how well a state funds its smoking cigarettes quitline relative to the minimum standard of $10.53 per smoker set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Delaware funds its quitline at $8.73 per smoker, using money funded by the settlement between the state and cheap cigarette online companies in 1999. Other states, like New Jersey, fund their quitlines at less than $1.
This year, the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act required Medicaid to offer cheap cigarettes cessation services for pregnant women. Rosanne Mahaney, Medicaid director for Delaware, noted that the state has always offered medications and counseling to help all enrollees, including pregnant women, quit.
Medications are covered by state employee health insurance, but Delaware does not mandate private insurers do the same.
McMackin said she was motivated to quit after the birth of her first grandchild, but credits her relationship with a Quitline counselor and the nicotine patches provided to her free of charge with helping her succeed.
Deb Brown, president and CEO of the American Lung Association of the Mid-Atlantic, said smoking cigarettes cessation initiatives are a good investment in the health of citizens and provide economic returns.
"There was a study at Penn State that did show that when you put money into helping smokers quit, you certainly get an economic return," she said. "Employees are in better health, they work more and you have more productive citizens in the business workforce."
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Delaware Tops Quit-friendly States For Smokers
While Delaware is ranked as the third most quit-friendly state for smokers in the American Lung Association's "Helping Smokers Quit: Tobacco Cessation Coverage 2011" report, a couple of its neighbors rank toward the bottom.
According to the ALA, there is an uneven patchwork of quit-smoking cigarettes treatments and services made available nationwide. Among the states that are the least quit-friendly for smokers is Maryland, ranked tied for 42nd out of 45 states ranked.
States were ranked based on cessation coverage in Medicaid plans and state employee health plan coverage, cost per smoker for state-run quit lines and standards for private insurance coverage.
Delaware's Medicaid program recently expanded coverage for cheap cigarettes cessation counseling to all enrollees, making its cigarettes online cessation benefit completely comprehensive. The state also provides cigarettes cessation treatments to its state employees and their family members.
In Delaware, the adult smoking cigarettes rate is 18.3 percent, compared to the national rate of 20.6 percent. Annual health care costs directly caused by smoking cigarettes in the state is $284 million. The tobacco industry spends $106.7 million on marketing expenditures in Delaware.
Additionally, the Delaware quit line is funded at a rate of $7.33 per smoker, which is below the national minimum standard of $10.53 that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends to reach an adequate number of smokers in every state.
Dr. Karyl Rattay, director of the Delaware Division of Public Health, said tobacco prevention and cessation are priorities for the state, and she is grateful the state has public officials and a Delaware Health Fund Advisory Committee that understand how important these issues are, as tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in the state, as well as the nation.
"Because of the commitments of these individuals and groups, we've been able to fund the important initiatives we have for tobacco prevention and cessation," she said. "We have seen a decrease in smoking cigarettes and tobacco use in the state. We've made progress, but we still have a ways to go."
For those in Delaware who want to quit smoking cigarettes but need help, they can call 211 to access the quit line, where they can develop a plan with someone on how to quit and get medication to help them do so.
Meanwhile, in Maryland, the state is ranked the third least quit-friendly state for smokers according to the ALA because there are too many smokers in Maryland who are not able to get the help they need to quit smoking cigarettes.
The state government does not offer tobacco cessation benefits to state employees, and the state's quit line is funded at $1.20 per smoker for fiscal year 2012. Some low-income Medicaid enrollees in Maryland do have access to tobacco cessation treatment, but it is not guaranteed for all Medicaid enrollees.
"There is absolutely no excuse for these states' tragic failure to help its smokers quit," said Dennis Alexander, regional executive director of the American Lung Association in Maryland.
According to the ALA, there is an uneven patchwork of quit-smoking cigarettes treatments and services made available nationwide. Among the states that are the least quit-friendly for smokers is Maryland, ranked tied for 42nd out of 45 states ranked.
States were ranked based on cessation coverage in Medicaid plans and state employee health plan coverage, cost per smoker for state-run quit lines and standards for private insurance coverage.
Delaware's Medicaid program recently expanded coverage for cheap cigarettes cessation counseling to all enrollees, making its cigarettes online cessation benefit completely comprehensive. The state also provides cigarettes cessation treatments to its state employees and their family members.
In Delaware, the adult smoking cigarettes rate is 18.3 percent, compared to the national rate of 20.6 percent. Annual health care costs directly caused by smoking cigarettes in the state is $284 million. The tobacco industry spends $106.7 million on marketing expenditures in Delaware.
Additionally, the Delaware quit line is funded at a rate of $7.33 per smoker, which is below the national minimum standard of $10.53 that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends to reach an adequate number of smokers in every state.
Dr. Karyl Rattay, director of the Delaware Division of Public Health, said tobacco prevention and cessation are priorities for the state, and she is grateful the state has public officials and a Delaware Health Fund Advisory Committee that understand how important these issues are, as tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in the state, as well as the nation.
"Because of the commitments of these individuals and groups, we've been able to fund the important initiatives we have for tobacco prevention and cessation," she said. "We have seen a decrease in smoking cigarettes and tobacco use in the state. We've made progress, but we still have a ways to go."
For those in Delaware who want to quit smoking cigarettes but need help, they can call 211 to access the quit line, where they can develop a plan with someone on how to quit and get medication to help them do so.
Meanwhile, in Maryland, the state is ranked the third least quit-friendly state for smokers according to the ALA because there are too many smokers in Maryland who are not able to get the help they need to quit smoking cigarettes.
The state government does not offer tobacco cessation benefits to state employees, and the state's quit line is funded at $1.20 per smoker for fiscal year 2012. Some low-income Medicaid enrollees in Maryland do have access to tobacco cessation treatment, but it is not guaranteed for all Medicaid enrollees.
"There is absolutely no excuse for these states' tragic failure to help its smokers quit," said Dennis Alexander, regional executive director of the American Lung Association in Maryland.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
New Castle County To Ban Smoking Outdoors
New Castle County government has announced that starting Jan. 3, 2012, smoking cigarettes will be prohibited throughout the campuses of the three office complexes where most of the county’s 1,400 employees work.
The policy will apply to employees and visitors at the Government Center/James H. Gilliam Building complex on Reads Way in Corporate Commons, the William J. Conner Building on Old Churchmans Road, and the Paul J. Sweeney Public Safety Building on U.S. 13, all in New Castle.
Smoking inside county facilities has been prohibited since 1994. Since then the county has permitted employees to smoke cigarettes in designated outdoor areas. The new policy will extend the ban on smoking cigarettes to all outdoor areas on the grounds of the three affected office complexes. The County announced the new policy to employees Thursday, the 34th anniversary of the American Cancer Society’s Great American Smokeout, which spotlights the dangers of cigarettes use and the challenges of quitting.
The county will offer stop-smoking cigarettes programs for employees in conjunction with the new smoke-free policy, said County Executive Paul Clark. “While I understand that this policy may be difficult for some to adjust to, we are putting it into effect for the overall health and well-being of our employees and our visitors. We will be ready to help those who seek assistance in adapting to the policy.”
Since November 2002, Delaware has banned smoking cigarettes statewide in all enclosed workplaces, both public and private, with a handful of exemptions including private homes, rented social halls, designated smoking cigarettes rooms in hotels/motels and at fundraising activities held by certain organizations on their property. Additionally, local governments and private industry have the authority to further regulate smoking cigarettes, including banning smoking cigarettes in outdoor areas under their control. Local examples include the hospital campuses operated by Christiana Care and Delaware Health and Social Services and the Bethany Beach boardwalk and beach, all of which are smoke-free.
A July 2011 Gallup poll showed that about 22 percent of Americans 18 and older are regular smokers. This is down from 23 percent in 1999 and 28 percent in 1988. The same poll identified 24 percent of Americans as former smokers. About 23 percent of American men and 19 percent of women smoke. Despite steady reductions, more than 45 million Americans still smoke. In the July survey, 30 percent of smokers said they smoke cigarettes a pack or more each day. As recently as 1997, over half smoked a pack or more a day.
Tobacco use is the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society. Life expectancy for regular smokers is estimated to be from 10 to 18 years shorter than for non-smokers. Smoking and exposure to cigarettes store smoke cigarettes is blamed for 443,000 premature deaths annually in the United States. That’s more than 1,200 deaths a day.
The policy will apply to employees and visitors at the Government Center/James H. Gilliam Building complex on Reads Way in Corporate Commons, the William J. Conner Building on Old Churchmans Road, and the Paul J. Sweeney Public Safety Building on U.S. 13, all in New Castle.
Smoking inside county facilities has been prohibited since 1994. Since then the county has permitted employees to smoke cigarettes in designated outdoor areas. The new policy will extend the ban on smoking cigarettes to all outdoor areas on the grounds of the three affected office complexes. The County announced the new policy to employees Thursday, the 34th anniversary of the American Cancer Society’s Great American Smokeout, which spotlights the dangers of cigarettes use and the challenges of quitting.
The county will offer stop-smoking cigarettes programs for employees in conjunction with the new smoke-free policy, said County Executive Paul Clark. “While I understand that this policy may be difficult for some to adjust to, we are putting it into effect for the overall health and well-being of our employees and our visitors. We will be ready to help those who seek assistance in adapting to the policy.”
Since November 2002, Delaware has banned smoking cigarettes statewide in all enclosed workplaces, both public and private, with a handful of exemptions including private homes, rented social halls, designated smoking cigarettes rooms in hotels/motels and at fundraising activities held by certain organizations on their property. Additionally, local governments and private industry have the authority to further regulate smoking cigarettes, including banning smoking cigarettes in outdoor areas under their control. Local examples include the hospital campuses operated by Christiana Care and Delaware Health and Social Services and the Bethany Beach boardwalk and beach, all of which are smoke-free.
A July 2011 Gallup poll showed that about 22 percent of Americans 18 and older are regular smokers. This is down from 23 percent in 1999 and 28 percent in 1988. The same poll identified 24 percent of Americans as former smokers. About 23 percent of American men and 19 percent of women smoke. Despite steady reductions, more than 45 million Americans still smoke. In the July survey, 30 percent of smokers said they smoke cigarettes a pack or more each day. As recently as 1997, over half smoked a pack or more a day.
Tobacco use is the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society. Life expectancy for regular smokers is estimated to be from 10 to 18 years shorter than for non-smokers. Smoking and exposure to cigarettes store smoke cigarettes is blamed for 443,000 premature deaths annually in the United States. That’s more than 1,200 deaths a day.
Friday, December 16, 2011
Unanswered Questions In Smoke-free SA
When the city rolled out its sweeping smoking cigarettes ban this summer, eager to make the Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights list of smoke-free cities, the winners and losers were obvious. The winners: bars that already had sizable patios, cigar bars, and, many would argue, anyone with a set of lungs looking to imbibe clear of a carcinogenic cloud. Unaffected Alamo Heights’ bar and restaurant district sits ready to catch cigarette-puffing refugees aching for a drag while they sip their cocktails. And despite inclusion in early drafts of the ordinance, VFW posts, the River Walk, and the Shrine of Texas Liberty itself all escaped the ban. But if you’re an everyday pub, sports bar, or dive without a patio or enough space to build one: tough luck.
Judy Simpson, general manager at Finnegan’s on US 281 near Thousand Oaks, wagered her neighborhood pub has taken a 25-30 percent hit in sales. The future’s “looking a little better but not much,” Simpson said, as she and the landlord hash out plans for a patio.
Initially, Simpson considered building a properly cordoned smoking cigarettes area with fencing, chairs, tables, and ashtrays on her front sidewalk. But complications arose from the presence of an ADA accessible ramp and the need for full visibility. Currently, the bar is separated from the front sidewalk by a vestibule with two sets of double doors. The lack of visibility invites patrons to walk off with drinks or, worse, pass them to minors. “What we’re trying to do is build a place you can smoke cigarettes where you can take your drink and don’t feel like you’ve been ostracized from the rest of the bar,” she said. Simpson expects building to begin in December and complete sometime in January. She’s not worried about closing or laying anyone off. For now.
In puff-friendly Alamo Heights, the Broadway 5050 is catching the overflow, says General Manager and managing partner Danny Barborak. “People who have a cocktail often want a cigarette. … I’d say we’ve got some people stopping in here for a drink or two because it’s now a treat to smoke cigarettes inside,” he said, estimating sales have risen a few percentage points since the San Antonio ban began.
Meanwhile, for Alibis on Commerce east of US 281 and two of the Blue Star bars, business has marched forward with nary a hiccup since each had patios before the smoke-ban rollout.
Scott Saulle, who slings spirits at both Joe Blue’s on South Alamo and Joey’s on North St. Mary’s, said the ban hasn’t so much reduced the crowds, just shuffled them around a bit. Patrons now tend to crowd Joeys’ cozy, two-floor patio (which features an outside bar on weekends) instead of the smokeless indoors. “On a Wednesday night, I might have three people sitting at the bar and 25 people sitting outside,” he said. “It’s really weird.”
Joe Blue’s and Alibis both sport wraparound patios. Business at the former is unchanged, Saulle said. And according to Joey’s head waitress Lisa Gonzales, diehard indoor smokers have simply been swapped by customers who would likely jet after one drink on account of smoke. Save for the crowd redistribution and the occasional intense debate on the ban, patron traffic is virtually unchanged.
Alibis General Manager Tracey Thurman said the same, though her clientele, who like a smoke cigarettes while dancing or punching her touch-screen games, are mildly inconvenienced to step out. “We have a strong regular crowd,” she said. “Everything from bankers to bikers.”
Ron Herrera, co-owner of SoHo Martini & Wine Bar, says he’s lost a few dedicated cigar smokers, but on the whole the clientele has adjusted. They simply step outside to his tiny patio and light up. “Are we okay? Yeah,” he said. “I just don’t like being told how to run my own business.”
But the question remains: as a cigar bar, should Herrera’s patrons even have to step outside for a drag?
Herrera assumed SoHo was ban-exempt, falling under the umbrella term “retail cigarettes store store” in the city’s ordinance. On the Friday after the ban went into effect, Herrera said he got a call from the Mayor’s office, telling him he couldn’t keep his cigar-bar status if he continued to sell food, which apparently includes typical drink garnish like lemons, limes, and olives in cocktails (SoHo doesn’t carry the snacks found at some more traditional bars, like wings, fries, and pizza). Though Herrera found the logic a little baffling, he complied, saying the mayor’s rep threatened to sic a public health official on the bar if he didn’t. A city health employee still visited the following Monday to double down, he said.
Metro Health records show nobody’s filed a complaint against SoHo since the smoking cigarettes ban went into effect, but here’s where the new ordinance gets slippery. The new piece of city code uses the term “bar” to describe a place a lot like SoHo, which is an “establishment that is devoted to the serving of alcoholic beverages for consumption by guests.” But SoHo also sells cigars to patrons (though it’s unclear how many of late), and the new ordinance doesn’t say whether discount cigarette online products must make up a certain percent of sales in order to become an exempt “tobacco retail establishment” or “cigar bar” — only that the place is “utilized primarily for the sale of online cigarettes products.” And Herrera’s brush with city officials seems especially peculiar considering patrons at neighboring Swig Martini Bar above the River Walk continue to smoke cigarettes away — indoors.
Over the phone, Swig General Manager Michael Teran was uneasy discussing the matter, saying, “I don’t want to put a target on our backs.”
A list Metro Health provided to the Current show citizens have called in some 30 times since the ban complaining that a number of stores, private clubs, and bars are out of line with the new policy, Swig being one of them. Just three days after the ban went into effect, a customer called Metro Health complaining patrons were puffing away inside the bar. A Metro Health worker who followed up “observed employees smoking cigarettes upon entry to establishment. Owner was using the old muni-code (which has not been updated) as a basis to smoke,” the complaint states. Metro Health gave Swig a warning not to smoke cigarettes inside the bar, advising they put up some non-smoking cigarettes signage.
According to Metro Health spokeswoman Carol Schliesinger, the city has yet to fine any establishment for breaking the ban. Under the ordinance, a first-time violation carries a fine of up to $200. Repeat offenders could get smacked with fines of $500 to $2,000.
Schliesinger says the only guide Metro Health has for the tobacco shop and cigar bar-exemptions is the short, one-sentence blurb in the city code, which appears to leave much up to interpretation. “What’s written in the ordinance, that’s basically the only definition that we have [for cigar bars], at least at this point,” she said.
“The code doesn’t say anything about how much [tobacco] we have to sell,” Teran said. He then recited a piece of the new policy: “Under those exempt, it says, ‘Shall include but not be limited to cigar bars and humidors.’ We fit that.” We’ll see what the Mayor’s office thinks.
Judy Simpson, general manager at Finnegan’s on US 281 near Thousand Oaks, wagered her neighborhood pub has taken a 25-30 percent hit in sales. The future’s “looking a little better but not much,” Simpson said, as she and the landlord hash out plans for a patio.
Initially, Simpson considered building a properly cordoned smoking cigarettes area with fencing, chairs, tables, and ashtrays on her front sidewalk. But complications arose from the presence of an ADA accessible ramp and the need for full visibility. Currently, the bar is separated from the front sidewalk by a vestibule with two sets of double doors. The lack of visibility invites patrons to walk off with drinks or, worse, pass them to minors. “What we’re trying to do is build a place you can smoke cigarettes where you can take your drink and don’t feel like you’ve been ostracized from the rest of the bar,” she said. Simpson expects building to begin in December and complete sometime in January. She’s not worried about closing or laying anyone off. For now.
In puff-friendly Alamo Heights, the Broadway 5050 is catching the overflow, says General Manager and managing partner Danny Barborak. “People who have a cocktail often want a cigarette. … I’d say we’ve got some people stopping in here for a drink or two because it’s now a treat to smoke cigarettes inside,” he said, estimating sales have risen a few percentage points since the San Antonio ban began.
Meanwhile, for Alibis on Commerce east of US 281 and two of the Blue Star bars, business has marched forward with nary a hiccup since each had patios before the smoke-ban rollout.
Scott Saulle, who slings spirits at both Joe Blue’s on South Alamo and Joey’s on North St. Mary’s, said the ban hasn’t so much reduced the crowds, just shuffled them around a bit. Patrons now tend to crowd Joeys’ cozy, two-floor patio (which features an outside bar on weekends) instead of the smokeless indoors. “On a Wednesday night, I might have three people sitting at the bar and 25 people sitting outside,” he said. “It’s really weird.”
Joe Blue’s and Alibis both sport wraparound patios. Business at the former is unchanged, Saulle said. And according to Joey’s head waitress Lisa Gonzales, diehard indoor smokers have simply been swapped by customers who would likely jet after one drink on account of smoke. Save for the crowd redistribution and the occasional intense debate on the ban, patron traffic is virtually unchanged.
Alibis General Manager Tracey Thurman said the same, though her clientele, who like a smoke cigarettes while dancing or punching her touch-screen games, are mildly inconvenienced to step out. “We have a strong regular crowd,” she said. “Everything from bankers to bikers.”
Ron Herrera, co-owner of SoHo Martini & Wine Bar, says he’s lost a few dedicated cigar smokers, but on the whole the clientele has adjusted. They simply step outside to his tiny patio and light up. “Are we okay? Yeah,” he said. “I just don’t like being told how to run my own business.”
But the question remains: as a cigar bar, should Herrera’s patrons even have to step outside for a drag?
Herrera assumed SoHo was ban-exempt, falling under the umbrella term “retail cigarettes store store” in the city’s ordinance. On the Friday after the ban went into effect, Herrera said he got a call from the Mayor’s office, telling him he couldn’t keep his cigar-bar status if he continued to sell food, which apparently includes typical drink garnish like lemons, limes, and olives in cocktails (SoHo doesn’t carry the snacks found at some more traditional bars, like wings, fries, and pizza). Though Herrera found the logic a little baffling, he complied, saying the mayor’s rep threatened to sic a public health official on the bar if he didn’t. A city health employee still visited the following Monday to double down, he said.
Metro Health records show nobody’s filed a complaint against SoHo since the smoking cigarettes ban went into effect, but here’s where the new ordinance gets slippery. The new piece of city code uses the term “bar” to describe a place a lot like SoHo, which is an “establishment that is devoted to the serving of alcoholic beverages for consumption by guests.” But SoHo also sells cigars to patrons (though it’s unclear how many of late), and the new ordinance doesn’t say whether discount cigarette online products must make up a certain percent of sales in order to become an exempt “tobacco retail establishment” or “cigar bar” — only that the place is “utilized primarily for the sale of online cigarettes products.” And Herrera’s brush with city officials seems especially peculiar considering patrons at neighboring Swig Martini Bar above the River Walk continue to smoke cigarettes away — indoors.
Over the phone, Swig General Manager Michael Teran was uneasy discussing the matter, saying, “I don’t want to put a target on our backs.”
A list Metro Health provided to the Current show citizens have called in some 30 times since the ban complaining that a number of stores, private clubs, and bars are out of line with the new policy, Swig being one of them. Just three days after the ban went into effect, a customer called Metro Health complaining patrons were puffing away inside the bar. A Metro Health worker who followed up “observed employees smoking cigarettes upon entry to establishment. Owner was using the old muni-code (which has not been updated) as a basis to smoke,” the complaint states. Metro Health gave Swig a warning not to smoke cigarettes inside the bar, advising they put up some non-smoking cigarettes signage.
According to Metro Health spokeswoman Carol Schliesinger, the city has yet to fine any establishment for breaking the ban. Under the ordinance, a first-time violation carries a fine of up to $200. Repeat offenders could get smacked with fines of $500 to $2,000.
Schliesinger says the only guide Metro Health has for the tobacco shop and cigar bar-exemptions is the short, one-sentence blurb in the city code, which appears to leave much up to interpretation. “What’s written in the ordinance, that’s basically the only definition that we have [for cigar bars], at least at this point,” she said.
“The code doesn’t say anything about how much [tobacco] we have to sell,” Teran said. He then recited a piece of the new policy: “Under those exempt, it says, ‘Shall include but not be limited to cigar bars and humidors.’ We fit that.” We’ll see what the Mayor’s office thinks.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Famous Actress Part VII
Celebrity Actress Smoking Part VII
Here we have the seventh part of selected pictures with Hollywood Famous Actress smoking cigarettes. Enjoy the collection of photos with Celebrities Smoking Cigarettes.
1. Anouk Aimee Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Anouk Aimee Smoking L&M Red Label Cigarette
About Anouk Aimee : Anouk Aimée (born 27 April 1932) is a French film actress. Aimée has appeared in 70 films since 1947. She began her film career in 1947 at age 14. In 1958 she portrayed the tragic artist Jeanne Hébuterne in the film Les Amants de Montparnasse. She appeared in La dolce vita, 8½ and Jacques Demy's Lola. She won the 1967 Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the film that brought her international fame, A Man and a Woman.
She was awarded the Award for Best Actress at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival for her performance in Marco Bellocchio's Salto nel vuoto (Leap Into The Void), her co-star Michel Piccoli winning the Best Actor Prize.
2. Arielle Dombasle Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Arielle Dombasle Smoking L&M Blue Label Cigarette
About Arielle Dombasle : Arielle Dombasle (born April 27, 1958) is a French-American singer, actress, director and model. Her breakthrough roles were in Eric Rohmer's Pauline at the Beach (1983) and Alain Robbe-Grillet's The Blue Villa (1995). She is best known to American audiences for her appearances on Miami Vice and the 1984 miniseries Lace. She has released eight singles between 1978 and 2011 and seven albums.
She was born Arielle Laure Maxime Sonnery de Fromental, the daughter of Jean-Louis Melchior Sonnery de Fromental, a silk manufacturer, and Francion Garreau-Dombasle. She is part of a significant French-American immigrants in Mexico under her grand father diplomatic tenure. Dombasle family's surname was created in 1912, when Dombasle's grandfather Rene Sonnery (1887—1925), an industrialist from Lyon, married Anne-Marie Berthon du Fromental. In memory of hes mother who died at the age of 36, Arielle Sonnery, she took the pseudonym of "Arielle Dombasle".
She and her brother Gilbert were raised in Mexico by their maternal grandparents after their mother died in 1964. She was also raised at Chateau de Chaintre, the Sonnery family's estate near Saumur, Maine et Loire. Her maternal grandfather, Maurice Garreau-Dombasle, was a close friend of and advisor to Charles de Gaulle and served as the French ambassador to Mexico. Her maternal grandmother was Man'Ha Dombasle (nee Germaine Massenet, 1898–1999, a writer and poet who translated Rabindranath Tagore's works into French and was a longtime friend of the science fiction writer Ray Bradbury, who dedicated to her his 1972 novel The Halloween Tree.
3. Cindy Crawford Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Cindy Crawford Smoking L&M Silver Cigarette
About Cindy Crawford : Cynthia Ann "Cindy" Crawford (born February 20, 1966) is an American model. Known for her trademark mole just above her lip, Crawford has adorned hundreds of magazine covers throughout her career. She was named #3 on VH1's 40 Hottest Hotties of the 90s. Her success at modeling made her a celebrity that has led to roles in television and film, and to work as a spokesperson. Crawford was born in DeKalb, Illinois, the daughter of Jennifer Sue Crawford-Moluf (nee Walker) and John Crawford (not to be confused with actor and former Mouseketeer Johnny Crawford, of The Rifleman fame). She was discovered at the age of 16 by a newspaper photographer.
He noticed Cindy at work during her summer job of detasseling corn and took a picture of her. The photo and positive feedback she received were enough to convince her to take up modeling. She entered the Elite Model Management's Look of the Year contest at 17 and was the runner-up. The Elite modeling agency in Chicago then started representing her.
Crawford graduated from DeKalb High School in 1984, as valedictorian. She won an academic scholarship to study chemical engineering at Northwestern University, which she attended for only one quarter. She dropped out in order to pursue a full-time modeling career. After working for photographer Victor Skrebneski in Chicago, Cindy moved to Manhattan in 1986; she was signed with the Elite New York modeling agency.
4. Anne Curtis Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Anne Curtis Smoking L&M BLU 83 Cigarette
About Anne Curtis : Anne Ojales Curtis-Smith, also known as Anne Curtis (born on 17 February 1985 in Yarrawonga, Victoria, Australia) is a Filipino-Australian actress, model, television host, singer and VJ currently active in the Philippines. Born Anne Curtis, she is the eldest daughter of Carmen Ojales, a Filipina and James Curtis-Smith, an Australian Lawyer. While on vacation at the Philippines at the age of 12, she was discovered, making her stay in the Philippines permanent.
First movie of Anne Curtis was Magic Kingdom where she played a burikat. She attended T.G.I.S (Thank God It's Sabado) during her teen life. She had few teleserye in GMA Network. In 2004, she transferred to ABS-CBN. She rose to prominence when she played Stephanie in Hiram along with Geoff Eigenman, Heart Evangelista, Kris Aquino, and Dina Bonnevie.
After the teleserye, she was given the role of Imang, a Kampanerang Kuba. It was a remake of the movie, Kampanerang Kuba played before by Vilma Santos, mother of Luis Manzano who is her longtime bestfriend. After the teleserye, she was one of the lead roles of Maging Sino Ka Man opposites, Bea Alonzo, John Lloyd Cruz,and Sam Milby, her ex Boyfriend. Maging Sino Ka Man was followed by Maging Sino Ka Man: Book 2. She starred in the drama series "Dyosa". She was also the daughter of Ai Ai de las Alas in Ang Cute Ng Ina Mo. Love Interest of Aga Muhlach in When Love Begins, a block buster movie with Jericho Rosales in Baler, where she won best actress in MMFF 2008. Curtis plays the role of beautiful socialite Kara Zalderiaga in the blockbuster 2011 film No Other Woman. Currently, she has a successful blog on LOOKBOOK.NU
5. Ashleigh Banfield Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Ashleigh Banfield Smoking L&M GRI 83 Cigarette
About Ashleigh Banfield : Ashleigh Banfield (born December 29, 1967 in Winnipeg, Manitoba) is a Canadian-American journalist who as of 2010 hosts Disorder in the Court, Open Court and Hollywood Heat on Tru TV (formerly CourtTV), where she reports on domestic and pop culture issues. Prior to joining the network, Banfield worked for MSNBC and reported from numerous overseas locations, including the Middle East and Central Asia. She received several Emmy Awards for her body of journalistic work, and criticized media coverage of the Iraq War in April 2003.
She was also briefly a law and justice correspondent on Good Morning America until October 2011 and now works for CNN Early Start. She began her career in 1988 at CJBN-TV in Kenora, Ontario, and at CKY-TV in Winnipeg later that year. From 1989 to 1992, she anchored the weekend news for CFRN-TV in Edmonton, and from 1992 until 1995, at CICT-TV in Calgary, where she won two Iris Awards. During her tenure at CICT, Banfield worked as a freelance associate producer for ABC's World News Tonight. She covered the 1991 Bush/Gorbachev Summit in Russia and the 1992 Clinton/Yeltsin Summit in Vancouver.
6. Ashley Greene Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Ashley Greene Smoking L&M Mixx Cigarette
About Ashley Greene : Ashley Michele Greene (born February 21, 1987) is an American actress and model, best known for playing Alice Cullen in the film adaptations of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight novels. Greene was born in Jacksonville, Florida, and is the daughter of Michele (nee Tatum), who works in insurance, and Joe Greene, a U.S. Marine who now owns his own concrete business. She grew up in Middleburg and Jacksonville, and went to University Christian School before transferring to Wolfson High School when she was in tenth grade.
She moved to Los Angeles, California, at the age of 17 to pursue an acting career. Greene has an older brother named Joe, who still resides in Jacksonville with their parents. Greene is good friends with her Twilight co-stars, particularly Kellan Lutz and Jackson Rathbone whom she knew before filming of the series began. She dated singer Joe Jonas. The two broke up in March 2011.
Greene has stated the she grew up watching football and is a Florida Gators fan. She was also seen attending a Green Bay Packers game against the New York Giants with Jonas and Jessica Szohr at Lambeau Field in 2010. In 2009, nude self portraits of Greene were leaked onto the internet. Her attorneys threatened to sue various websites that published the pictures.
7. Ashley Judd Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Ashley Judd Smoking L&M Vibe Cigarette
About Ashley Judd : Ashley Tyler Cininella Judd (born April 19, 1968) is an American television and film actress, who has played lead roles in films including Ruby in Paradise, Kiss the Girls, Double Jeopardy, Where the Heart Is and High Crimes. She is active in a number of humanitarian and political causes, including two missions to the Democratic Republic of Congo to campaign against sexual violence against women. She will star in the new TV drama Missing on ABC, starting March 15, 2012.
Ashley was born as Ashley Tyler Ciminella in Granada Hills, California. She is the daughter of Naomi Judd, a country music singer and motivational speaker, and Michael C. Ciminella, a marketing analyst for the horseracing industry. Ashley's elder half-sister, Wynonna, also is a country music singer. Her paternal grandfather was of Sicilian descent, and her paternal grandmother was a descendant of Mayflower pilgrim William Brewster. At the time of her birth, her mother was unemployed and did not become well known as a singer until the early 1980s.
Judd's parents divorced in 1972, and in 1973 her mother took her back to her native Kentucky, where Judd spent the majority of her childhood. She also lived in Marin County, California, for two years during grade school. She appeared on an April 8, 2011 episode of the NBC television show, Who Do You Think You Are? where she learned that an ancestor that served in the American Civil War lost his leg at the Battle of Saltville I, Virginia, and not at Andersonville prison, as she previously believed. Judd attended 13 schools before college, including the Sayre School in Lexington, Kentucky, Paul G. Blazer High School in Ashland Kentucky and Franklin High School in Tennessee.
She briefly tried modeling in Japan during a school break. An alumna of the sorority Kappa Kappa Gamma at the University of Kentucky, she majored in French and minored in anthropology, art history, theater and women's studies. She spent a semester studying in France as part of her major, a move that mirrored her role as Reed in the television series Sisters. She graduated from the UK Honors Program and was nominated to Phi Beta Kappa, but did not graduate with her class.
Forgoing her commitment to join the Peace Corps, after college she drove to Hollywood, where she studied with well-respected acting teacher, Robert Carnegie, at Playhouse West. During this time, she worked as a hostess at The Ivy restaurant and lived in a Malibu rental house, which burned down during the great Malibu fires of fall 1993. On May 9, 2007, it was announced Judd had completed her bachelor's degree in French from the University of Kentucky.
In a May 2007 appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Judd explained she had completed her degree requirements in 1990 with 27 more hours taken than the required 120 hours, but had mistakenly thought she was one class short. She only needed to "sign a piece of paper" in order to graduate. DeGeneres then surprised Judd by presenting her with her diploma, which Ellen had acquired from the university. Judd subsequently earned a Master's degree in Public Administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 2010.
8. Ashley Olsen Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Ashley Olsen Smoking L&M One Cigarette
About Ashley Olsen : Ashley Fuller Olsen (born June 13, 1986) is an American actress, fashion designer, producer, and author. She co-founded luxury fashion brand The Row and the more affordable line Olsenboye with her twin sister Mary-Kate Olsen and started her own fashion company called Elizabeth and James. Ashley is the older sister of Elizabeth Olsen. Olsen began her career at the age of nine months, when she and Mary-Kate were hired to share the role of Michelle Tanner on the popular television series Full House in 1987.
To comply with child labor laws regarding child actors, Ashley and Mary-Kate took turns during taping of the show. Both girls were credited as "Mary Kate Ashley Olsen" in an attempt to keep audiences from realizing that two children played the role. Following Full House, Olsen released a string of successful straight-to-video movies and became a popular figure in the preteen market during the late '90s and early 2000s. She became a household name, with her likeness seen in clothes, books, fragrances, magazines, movies, and posters, among others.
There were fashion dolls of her made by Mattel from 2000-2005. She starred in the video series The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley, the ABC show Two of a Kind, and ABC Family's So Little Time. She and her sister were jointly ranked number three on the VH1 program 100 Greatest Child Stars. In 2004, Ashley appeared alongside Mary-Kate in the theatrical light-hearted romantic comedy, New York Minute (film), also starring Eugene Levy. "New York Minute" was Ashley's final acting project. In 2008, Mary-Kate and Ashley released the book Influence, which contained interviews with many creative and influential people including Karl Lagerfeld, Terry Richardson, Diane von Furstenberg and many more.
9. Ashley Scott Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Ashley Scott Smoking Lucky Strike Red Cigarette
About Ashley Scott : Ashley McCall Scott (born July 13, 1977) is an American actress. She is known for her work on television and in film including her roles in the television series Birds of Prey, Dark Angel and Jericho. Scott has appeared in numerous television series such as Dark Angel, Joey and CSI: Miami. In 2002 she appeared as Helena Kyle/The Huntress on The WB television drama series Birds of Prey. The series premiered October 9, 2002.
Despite the weekly ratings of 7.6 million viewers and the network's largest audience in the 18–34 demographic at the time, the series was cancelled. Thirteen episodes were produced in total. In 2006 it was announced she has signed on as a series regular on Jericho as Emily Sullivan. The show ran on CBS from September 20, 2006 through March 25, 2008. It was initially canceled after its first full season due to poor ratings.
While a fan campaign was able to convince the network to bring the show back for a seven-episode second season, it was canceled for a second time after that run. In May 2010, Scott appeared as Dana Hutton, in an episode of the CBS series NCIS. Scott made her screen debut in a minor role as Gigolo Jane in AI Artificial Intelligence in 2001. She has since then appeared in numerous films such as S.W.A.T. (as Jim Street's Girlfiriend), Walking Tall and Strange Wilderness. In 2005 she appeared in the role of Amanda in Columbia Pictures action film Into the Blue. In 2008 she starred in film Strange Wilderness as Cheryl. In 2009 she starred alongside John Cena in 12 Rounds.
10. Ashley Tisdale Smoking Cigarette
Celebrity Ashley Tisdale Smoking Lucky Strike Silver Cigarette
About Ashley Tisdale : Ashley Michelle Tisdale (born July 2, 1985) is an American actress and singer who rose to prominence portraying the candy-counter girl Maddie Fitzpatrick in Disney Channel's The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and the female antagonist Sharpay Evans in the High School Musical film series. The High School Musical series became a successful franchise which included two television films, a feature movie, a spin-off and numerous soundtrack albums.
The popularity earned by Tisdale in High School Musical led her to sign a solo record deal with Warner Bros. Records in 2006. Her debut album Headstrong, was released in February 2007, and debuted at number five in the U.S. chart and sold 64,000 copies in the first week. It was later certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. A second studio album, Guilty Pleasure, was released in 2009. Tisdale owns a production company and has worked as an executive producer in movies which included the ABC Family television film Picture This.
Tisdale has a prominent voice role as Candace Flynn in Disney Channel's Phineas & Ferb, a cartoon which became television's most-watched animated series among kids and tweens and had been met with acclaim by critics. In 2009, she was cast in her first major broadcast role in The CW's television series Hellcats as Savannah Monroe, an intense and very religious cheerleader.
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