Michigan Study Shows Positive Results for Smoking Ban

A new study released by the Michigan Department of Community Heath shows the positive health effects the Dr. Ron Davis Smoke Free Air Law is having on the state of Michigan. The study, measuring air quality in restaurants, confirmed a 93 percent reduction in the level of dangerous particulate matter in the air after the law went into effect.

The MDCH study was conducted in 77 restaurants that allowed smoking prior to the passage of the law. According to the study, 85 percent of those establishments registered poor to dangerous air quality prior to the law’s passage.

“A 93 percent drop in particulates is significant,” said Judy Stewart, campaign manager for the Michigan Campaign for Smokefree Air. “It shows that the law has leveled the playing field and given bar and restaurant workers the same right that most of us in Michigan enjoy—the right to work in a safe and clean environment.”

Michigan became the 38th state in the nation to implement a smokefree air law on May 1, 2010. This new study showing cleaner and healthier work environments complements other research showing the law has had no net negative economic impact on business in our state.

“Critics of the smokefree air law, to this day, pay little attention to the health benefits of the law and choose instead to turn it into a political and partisan issue,” said Stewart. “What they ignore is the fact that smokefree air laws make for healthier employees, help increase worker productivity, lower the burden on Medicaid and Medicare by reducing health care costs for tobacco-related diseases, and overall, save lives by reducing exposure to a dangerous carcinogen—secondhand smoke.”

The Michigan Campaign for Smokefree Air commends Michigan policymakers for following the lead of a majority of other states and making Michigan smokefree. The most current poll (May 2011) of Michigan voters shows that 74 percent support the law and 93 percent say they will frequent bars and restaurants as often, or more often, than before the law was passed. “There is no question that this law is good for Michigan,” said Stewart.