Policy Initiatives

Public policy can play a major role in reducing smoking. Increasing taxes on cigarettes, prohibiting smoking in public places, and restricting tobacco marketing are examples of changes that can make a significant impact.

Do Policy Changes Work?

Research suggests that local actions can sharply reduce smoking prevalence.¹ For example, New York City's 2002 tobacco control strategy increased cigarette taxes, prohibited smoking in bars and restaurants, and increased cessation services. These policy initiatives resulted in an 11% decrease in smoking prevalence among adults from 2002 to 2003 (approximately 140,000 fewer smokers).

How Can I Get Involved?

There are various coalitions throughout the state of Maryland that focus on changing smoking policies and reducing tobacco-related illness and death. You can contact your local health department to find out how to get involved with these organizations.

• Tax Issues
• Smoke-free Initiatives
• Ordinances

Tax Issues

Research has suggested the single greatest policy determinant of youth smoking is the price of cigarettes.² Maryland's state tobacco tax increased to $2.00 per pack in January, 2008. Now Maryland, along with 5 other states, ranks 4th in the U.S. in terms of highest tax rate per pack of cigarettes. New Jersey ranks 1st with $2.58 tax per pack of cigarettes. The lowest tax is $0.07 in South Carolina.⁵

• At the time the legislation was created to increase the cigarette tax, the added revenue was intended to go toward:
  • Funding comprehensive prevention and cessation program for teens
  • Giving thousands of uninsured families access to care
  • Helping small businesses afford health care coverage for their workers
  • Increasing funding for community health centers
  
  

Smoke-free Initiatives

• According to the U.S. Surgeon General, there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke, and even brief exposure can have immediate harmful effects.³ The only way to protect nonsmokers from the dangerous chemicals in secondhand smoke is to eliminate smoking indoors.
• All of the best designed studies report no impact or a positive impact of smoke-free restaurant and bar laws on sales or employment.⁴
• All bars and restaurants in Maryland now provide 100% smoke-free environments for workers and patrons!!
• To learn more you can visit the website for Maryland's Clean Indoor Air Act (CIAA): http://cha.state.md.us/oeh/ciaa/index.html

Smoke-free Hospitals 

• Many Maryland Hospitals are already smoke-free! To see which have already made the commitment to make their campus a more healthy place for patients, employees, and visitors, click here.

• The Maryland Hospital Association has developed a tool-kit of resources to provide resources for Campuses that plan to go smoke-free. Implementation plans, media relation templates, letters to community groups, resources for employee and client smokers, FAQs for enforcement, and more is available via their website: http://www.mdhospitals.org/mha/Community_Health_Resources/Smoke_Free_Hospital_Campuses.shtml.

Ordinances

• Fourteen states and DC and Puerto Rico have laws that require smoke-free restaurants, bars, and workplaces.
• Fifteen additional states have 100% smoke-free policies in one or two of the three categories of businesses (restaurants, bars, workplaces).
• For more detailed information on smoke-free polices & ordinances in the United States, check the Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights website.
• A University of Maryland report demonstrated that the smoke-free ordinance in Montgomery County had no impact on the restaurant tax revenue or employment in all restaurants after the law went into effect in 2003. For more information, read the full report.
• It is illegal to smoke in most indoor workspaces in Maryland unless confined to an enclosed and separately ventilated room [COMAR 09.12.23.03]. An employer may allow smoking in a designated area if that area meets certain requirements. EMPLOYERS MAY ADOPT TOUGHER STANDARDS TO PROHIBIT SMOKING.