Free Republic

BANGOR - Protecting the lungs of little ones in foster care from the effects of secondhand smoke is the primary reason behind a new law in Maine." Secondhand smoke is really dangerous for kids," said Janet Spencer, director of Bangor Region Partners for Health. "Their lungs are in a developing stage and anything that is pulled into their lungs can potentially be harmful in the long run. In a lot of ways secondhand smoke is more harmful." The law, which was enacted last fall, calls for the Maine Department of Human Services to "adopt rules on smoking by foster parents...

A US government agency has drawn up a comprehensive plan to encourage five million Americans to stop smoking. The Interagency Committee on Smoking and Health, which developed the 10 point plan over 14 months, has proposed increasing the tax on a pack of cigarettes by $2 (£1; €1.60). Details of the national plan for tobacco cessation are published in the American Journal of Public Health (2004;94:205-10), and the plan was endorsed by four former US surgeons general—Jesse Steinfeld, Julius Richmond, C Everett Koop, and David Satcher—at a press conference last week in Washington, DC. The $2 tax is estimated to...

An air filtration system, new to the UK could help to avoid a smoking ban in pubs, restaurants and other public places in the UK, claims Dianne White MD of Essa air cleaners, which claim to be so effective that the need for smoking and no-smoking areas in pubs and restaurants could be eradicated, solving a number of issues highlighted in the current smoking in public places debate.Already a number of leisure industry heavyweights have installed these air filtration units in their outlets nationwide. A spokesman for Thwaites Inns, the trading arm of Daniel Thwaites Brewery running 70 managed houses...

Committee sends bill to the full state SenateInvoking the words of Ronald Reagan and the Founding Fathers, members of the Senate agriculture committee said they were upholding personal freedoms by unanimously approving a bill that would outlaw local smoking bans.By a 10-0 vote, lawmakers embraced Sen. Dan Seum's proposal, which would prohibit cities from banning public smoking in areas other than local government buildings. Under the bill, cities could require businesses to post entrance signs that state their smoking policies, giving adults the choice whether to walk into a smoky environment, the committee members said.Several supporters described the bill as...

<p>Gov. Ernie Fletcher must think bigger if he wants an increase in the cigarette tax to be as good for the state's health as he expects it could be for its budget, health advocates warned yesterday.</p> <p>While smoking opponents said any tax increase is good news, they also said it would take at least a 75-cents-a-pack jump in the price of cigarettes to persuade enough smokers to quit to make a big difference.</p>

Invoking the words of Ronald Reagan and the Founding Fathers, members of the Senate agriculture committee said they were upholding personal freedoms by unanimously approving a bill that would outlaw local smoking bans. By a 10-0 vote, lawmakers embraced Sen. Dan Seum's proposal, which would prohibit cities from banning public smoking in areas other than local government buildings. Under the bill, cities could require businesses to post entrance signs that state their smoking policies, giving adults the choice whether to walk into a smoky environment, the committee members said. Several supporters described the bill as "common sense." "It's a compromise,...

Two bars in southern Maine have been issued citations alleging that they violated the state's month-old anti-smoking law, a sign that the state plans to aggressively enforce the new health initiative.Authorities said complaints registered with the Attorney General's Office led to investigations that found McGillicuddy's in Brunswick and Caswell House in Harrison were not in compliance with the law, which went into effect Jan. 1.Anti-smoking advocates said Thursday that the citations, which could lead to thousands of dollars in fines, show that Maine is committed to a healthier environment for workers as well as bar patrons.An official at the...

AUGUSTA - Attorney General Steven Rowe announced Thursday the first enforcement actions against violators of Maine's smoking ban in bars that went into effect on New Year's Day.Lawsuits were brought against bars in Brunswick and Harrison based on citizen complaints, Rowe said in a statement.A state investigation confirmed that McGillicuddy's in Brunswick and the Caswell House in Harrison failed to observe the state's smoking ban, one of the strictest in the nation, the attorney general said.Mike Molloy, owner of the Caswell House, had no comment Thursday morning. No one from McGillicuddy's was available to comment.

HOULTON - Linda Drake can't remember a time when the Black Duck Lounge was so quiet. A bartender in the lounge, located in Ivey's Motor Lodge just off Interstate 95, for the last 14 years, Drake had grown accustomed to hearing orders shouted over the din of clinking glasses and the hum of the two televisions hanging above the bar. She knows most of the regulars' orders by heart and is used to seeing the same people on a daily basis. Now, however, after the state's ban on smoking in bars went into effect on New Year's Day, Drake doesn't...