Iowa becomes smoke-free

cigarette butts

The University of Iowa has announced that it will become smoke-free by July 1, 2009. I was born in Iowa. Most of my family lives there, so I am thrilled to hear any news on tobacco cessation programs, smoke-free campuses, etc. The last time I went back for a visit I almost choked to death while sitting in the non-smoking version of a restaurant. Excuse me, but the air does not recognize your latticed divider.

The smoke-free dining atmosphere of Corvallis, Oregon is wonderful!

Don’t forget that OSU is going to be tobacco free on July 1, 2008 and Miami University will be smoke-free in the fall of 2008.

I even located a model policy for a smoke-free university

The University of Iowa will become the first of Iowa’s public universities to ban smoking on campus, President Sally Mason announced Monday.

Mason decided to accept a task force recommendation that the 30,000-student campus become entirely smoke-free by July 1, 2009. Officials say the policy is “aspirational,” and will not involve police enforcement.

“The intent is not to say to our police department, ‘Go get ’em,’ ” U of I spokesman Steve Parrott said Monday. “The emphasis is on civility and respect. We hope people will honor that.”

Mason told faculty, staff and students about her decision in an e-mail. She said a campuswide smoking ban will help smokers quit, lower health insurance costs and increase productivity. One part of the implementation will be the provision of free or discounted smoking cessation programs and services

via the Des Moines Register

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.