From Vanessa Wilson HoumaToday.com- "Lawmakers did right thing in smoking ban"

With the passage of the Louisiana Smoke-Free Act, Louisiana legislators have finally responded to the majority—75 percent—of their constituents—nonsmokers who want and deserve the right to breathe clean, smoke-free air.

Eliminating secondhand smoke in all public places, including restaurants and work places, is a step that will save lives and money. Employees deserve to work in environments free of the poisons found in secondhand smoke, the nations third leading cause of preventable death. Employers will come to appreciate healthier and more-productive employees, less absenteeism, fewer worker-compensation claims, lower insurance costs and reductions in turnover that will follow from a smoke-free work environment. Everyone wins.

Congratulations to our lawmakers for listening, responding and protecting Louisianians from the dangerous and deadly effects of exposure to secondhand smoke. A smoke-free Louisiana is a healthier Louisiana.