Smoking Ban Impacts To Be Studied
Mississippi is one of nine states that health officials plan to look at to study the economic impact of smoke-free policies in restaurants and bars.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is using a grant from Pfizer to complete the study announced this week.
Officials say that while the health benefits of smoke-free policies are clear, the view that they might hurt businesses can be a barrier to broader introduction of the policies. They hope the analysis will advance efforts to reduce secondhand smoke and the health risks it poses to nonsmokers.
Researchers will focus on restaurants and bars in Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas and West Virginia.
The analysis is scheduled to be completed by the second half of 2012.
