Smoke Free Mecklenburg gives law thumbs up

By Patricia Bossert

After years of hard work, Smoke Free Mecklenburg volunteers and people all across North Carolina can finally breathe a sigh of relief. On May 19th, 2009, we made history when Governor Bev Perdue signed into law a bill which will prohibit smoking in all restaurants and bars across North Carolina. Although the new law will not protect all workers from secondhand smoke exposure, it is a tremendous accomplishment and has made a strong statement across the country in support of smoke-free air regulations, particularly in tobacco-growing states.

Not only will this new law protect workers and patrons of restaurants and bars across our state, it will also provide local towns and counties the ability to pass stronger smoke-free air regulations if they choose. Local governments will now be able to strengthen the state law by prohibiting smoking in other indoor public places not covered by the current law, thereby offering protection from secondhand smoke to an even greater number of North Carolinians. Smoke Free Mecklenburg volunteers will be working with local officials on this effort.

Although there is still work to do to ensure that all North Carolinians are protected from secondhand smoke exposure, let’s take a minute to reflect on what a major accomplishment passing this law represents. North Carolina is the largest tobacco producing state in the country and it now has a strong smoke-free air law in place. This new law made national headlines and serves as a model for other tobacco growing states. On behalf of Smoke Free Mecklenburg, I would like to thank the North Carolina legislators who supported this bill and recognized that the health of citizens and visitors to our state was the most important consideration. They stepped forward and supported this issue for the health of their constituents and because they knew it was the right thing to do. They deserve our thanks and recognition!

On a personal note, as Vice Chair of Smoke Free Mecklenburg and as a mom, I want to sincerely thank everyone who helped make smoke-free air in North Carolina a reality. I am thrilled that I can now bring my son and my family into any restaurant and not worry about secondhand smoke affecting our health. Although it was a very long, uphill battle, we made history this year in North Carolina and we should all be very proud of that.
(Patricia Bossert is Smoke Free Mecklenburg vice chair)