http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/state/PA.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://thetartan.org/2012/1/30/news/smokingpetition http://tobacco.org/news/332964.html Physics postdoc Patrick Coles has started a petition to ban smoking on the Carnegie Mellon campus. As of last Thursday, the petition had received a total of 534 signatures on ipetitions.com. Coles said that he was “quite pleased by the support” his petition has received. “We are at the point where we should start talking to the administration,” he said. “The main issue is to protect people’s right to breathe clean air and to promote a healthy campus,” Coles said. The Tartan morgs@sbcglobal.net Mon, 30 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.wpxi.com/news/news/local/washington-county-housing-authority-issues-smoking/nHQY6/ http://tobacco.org/news/332952.html The Washington County Housing Authority sent a letter to residents this week stating that they must stop smoking inside of their apartments or they will be forced to leave. The letter states that starting on March 1 residents will not be allowed to smoke in or outside of their apartments. The letter goes on to say that anyone who wants to smoke must leave the housing authority's property to do so. Tammy McGaw said she was shocked when she received the letter at her Fredericktown Apartment on Monday. WPXI Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/healthcare/Pharmacists-hope-opportunity-to-advance-profession-wont-go-up-in-smoke.html?cmpid=131298144 http://tobacco.org/news/332924.html Pharmacists, especially those who practice at neighborhood pharmacies, are on the brink of an extraordinary opportunity. It is an opportunity that promises to bring about a shift in how health care is delivered while also addressing challenges related to patient safety, quality of health outcomes and health care costs. And it is an opportunity to tackle one of the biggest health problems in the U.S. . . . There are also pharmacists and others working within organizations that have taken on a mission to stop the sale of tobacco products in pharmacies. One of them conducts ongoing picketing at CVS stores in Washington. At least two major chains — Target Stores and Wegmans Supermarkets — no longer sell cigarettes out of concern for their customers. Kudos to them both. If ever there has been an optimal time to promote a professional image of pharmacists as providers who improve health outcomes, it is now. But they can’t do that while also selling cigarettes that kill people. We need to eliminate any barriers to the provision of new ways to provide pharmacy care and address the multibillion dollar problem of adverse drug events. Here’s hoping that tobacco sales in pharmacies won’t remain as one of those barriers. Philly blogs register@philly.com (Posted by Michael Cohen @ 1:41 PM) Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.yoursewickley.com/sewickleyherald/article/leetsdale-bans-smoking http://tobacco.org/news/332761.html Don't smoke near or in Leetsdale Borough property. That's the message council members are sending to visitors and employees after council President Joe McGurk said officials received complaints from people having to wade through cigarette smoke to enter the borough building on Beaver Street. "It really isn't fair that people would have to walk through cigarette smoke to get into the building," McGurk said. Sewickley Herald Star Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://articles.mcall.com/2012-01-18/health/mc-pennsylvania-smoking-report-20120118_1_smoking-rate-public-places-tobacco-settlement http://tobacco.org/news/332277.html Big Tobacco is preparing to open up a new front in the nicotine wars -- with toothpicks, dissolvable strips and breath mints. Speaking at a teleconference Wednesday to unveil the 10th annual State of Tobacco Control report, representatives of the American Lung Association said they are concerned about new products tobacco companies are test-marketing in select cities. The products include nicotine-infused "sticks," strips and "orbs" developed by R.J. Reynolds, according to U.S. Food and Drug Administration records. They're "a new breed of tobacco products," Erika Sward, the association's director of national advocacy, said. The products are designed not to help smokers quit, but to help them satisfy their craving for nicotine when they're in workplaces, restaurants and other public places that prohibit smoking, officials said. Reynolds is testing the products in places such as Columbus, Ohio; Portland, Ore.; Denver and Indianapolis. As the advocates held their news conference, the FDA's Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee was beginning a closed, three-day hearing in Rockville, Md., to discuss the health implications of so-called "dissolvable" tobacco. Allentown Morning Call tim.darragh@mcall.com (Tim Darragh, Of The Morning Call) Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/nicotinetests010912/nicotinetests010912/ http://tobacco.org/news/332210.html A growing number of employers throughout the nation are seeking to curb health costs by testing new job applicants for nicotine use. Those who test positive will not be hired, and health insurance companies may charge a higher premium for current employees who acknowledge that they smoke or chew tobacco. Although bans on hiring tobacco users are still relatively rare, dozens of firms -- many, but not all, tied to health care or insurance -- have imposed round-the-clock smoking restrictions on new hires and threatened staff who smoke with higher benefit costs at best and in some cases termination if they don't quit. Most employers, even hospitals, ban or limit smoking at work and offer incentives for smokers to quit, but don't refuse to hire people who use tobacco. Geisinger is part of a national trend among hospitals and health systems, says Julie Kissinger, vice president for communications for the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania. Columbus Republic Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.yoursewickley.com/sewickleyherald/article/leetsdale-council-enforces-smoking-ban http://tobacco.org/news/332178.html Don't smoke near or in Leetsdale Borough property. That's the message council members are sending visitors and employees after council President Joe McGurk said officials received complaints from people having to wade through cigarette smoke to enter the borough building on Beaver Street. "It really isn't fair that people would have to walk through cigarette smoke to get into the building," McGurk said. Sewickley Herald Star rcherry@tribweb.com ( Bobby Cherry Sewickley Herald) Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://cumberlink.com/news/local/carlisle-borough-council-bans-tobacco-products-in-parks/article_21041072-3e69-11e1-a84c-001871e3ce6c.html http://tobacco.org/news/332074.html Thursday night, Carlisle Borough Council took a step toward making the borough a healthier community. By a unanimous vote of 6-0 (council president Perry Heath, who is also acting mayor, didn't vote on anything Thursday night), council banned the displaying, distributing, using, chewing, expectorating, discarding, lighting or smoking of tobacco products in borough parks. New council member Robin Guido read the proposed ordinance and made the motion to approve it, noting as she did that, "As a nurse, I love getting to use the word ‘expectorate' publicly." Solicitor Ed Schorpp, who drafted the ordinance, laughed and said that "expectorate" was the only appropriate word for the situation. Carlisle Sentinel Sat, 14 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://cumberlink.com/news/local/carlisle-borough-council-bans-tobacco-products-in-borough-parks/article_8947268a-3e35-11e1-ae3c-001871e3ce6c.html http://tobacco.org/news/332003.html By a unanimous vote of 6-0 (council president Perry Heath, who is also acting mayor, didn't vote on anything Thursday night), council banned the displaying, distributing, using, chewing, expectorating, discarding, lighting or smoking of tobacco products in borough parks. New council member Robin Guido read the proposed ordinance and made the motion to approve it, noting as she did that, "As a nurse, I love getting to use the word ‘expectorate' publicly." Solicitor Ed Schorpp, who drafted the ordinance, laughed and said that "expectorate" was the only appropriate word for the situation. The ordinance came about through a grass-roots movement Carlisle Sentinel Sat, 14 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.goerie.com/article/20120110/NEWS02/301109964/Careless-smoking-blamed-in-fatal-west-Erie-fire http://tobacco.org/news/331827.html Careless smoking set off a west Erie apartment fire that caused the deaths of a couple who lived there, investigators said Monday. The fire Sunday morning at 338 W. Fifth St. started on a chair in the living room of the first-floor apartment, Erie Chief Fire Inspector Guy Santone said. The occupants of the apartment, Ronald Brown and Cindy Brown, were taken from the building and rushed to the hospital. Both later died. Investigators said Ronald Brown, no age available, went into cardiac arrest at the scene. Erie Times-News tim.hahn@timesnews.com (TIM HAHN) Tue, 10 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120109/NEWS/201090331/-1/news http://tobacco.org/news/331749.html As if the employment picture wasn't tough enough, Pennsylvania job applicants may have something new to worry about -- nicotine screening. Beginning Feb. 1, Geisinger Health Systems in Danville will no longer hire job applicants who use tobacco products. As part of a growing trend, all full- and part-time job applicants including volunteers and students in Geisinger-based schools will be tested for nicotine as a part of routine drug screening. . . . Geisinger is the third Pennsylvania health provider to employ such testing. Others include St. Luke's in the Lehigh Valley and Susquehanna Health Systems in Williamsport. Geisinger's intent is to reduce the hospital's health care costs and absenteeism rates. Pocono Record Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.goerie.com/article/20120109/NEWS02/301099928/Careless-smoking-blamed-in-fatal-west-Erie-fire-(Updated%3A-12%3A15-pm) http://tobacco.org/news/331727.html A fire that damaged a west Erie apartment and led to the deaths of the couple who lived there on Sunday morning was caused by careless smoking, Erie Chief Fire Inspector Guy Santone said. The fire at 338 W. Fifth St. started on a chair in the living room of the first-floor apartment, Santone said. Erie Times-News tim.hahn@timesnews.com (TIM HAHN) Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://blogs.philadelphiaweekly.com/phillynow/2012/01/04/will-2012-be-the-year-of-%E2%80%98no-smoking%E2%80%99-in-philly/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=will-2012-be-the-year-of-%25e2%2580%2598no-smoking%25e2%2580%2599-in-philly http://tobacco.org/news/331629.html Now, it’s being reported that there’s a movement to “close the loopholes” of the ban on indoor smoking, and make it so that smoking is simply banned indoors, everywhere. As according to WITF (h/t Keystone Politics), 2012 may see that happen. . . . “You never know,” said Brown. “Like, you could go into a restaurant thinking that ‘Oh, it’s a restaurant, it should be smoke-free,’ and for whatever reason of the exemptions, it may not be.” Brown said the exceptions weaken the indoor smoking ban. But the ban itself was the result of a hard-won compromise, something that had to be hammered out in a 2008 conference committee. The American Lung Association is said to be working with Republican State Sen. Greenleaf of Bucks County on this issue, neither of whom seem to realize how cool smoking looks. Philadelphia Weekly tips@philadelphiaweekly.com (Randy LoBasso) Wed, 04 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/local/item/32057 http://tobacco.org/news/331417.html Pennsylvanians trying to drop their cigarette habit can have a tough time staying away from smoke in bars. The state's Clean Indoor Air Act, in effect for about three years, exempts restaurants with liquor licenses from the indoor smoking ban if they report that food makes up less than 20 percent of their establishment's total annual sales. Deborah Brown, head of the American Lung Association of the Mid-Atlantic, says the result is a regulatory patchwork in which people aren't sure where they can go if they don't want to be around secondhand smoke. "A patchwork effect, I guess you could call it," she said. "Because you never know ... you could go into a restaurant thinking that 'Oh, it's a restaurant, it should be smoke-free,' and for whatever reason of the exemptions, it may not be," she said. Brown says she's working with state Sen. Stewart Greenleaf, a Montgomery County Republican, on closing those loopholes. WHYY newsworks@whyy.org (Mary Wilson ) Mon, 02 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.nydailynews.com/news/pennsylvania-hospital-hire-smokers-yorkers-outraged-article-1.999309?localLinksEnabled=false http://tobacco.org/news/331384.html New Yorkers offered a two-word prescription for a Pennsylvania hospital that plans to nicotine-test would-be workers: Butt out. “It’s discriminatory,” fumed Margaret Hatcher, 58, of Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. “As long as people are qualified, they should be given an opportunity.” Geisinger Health System of Danville, Pa., announced that beginning Feb. 1, it will not hire applicants who smoke cigars and cigarettes, or use chewing or smokeless tobacco. . . . Rhoda Thomas, a chaplain at Staten Island University Hospital for 11 years, said she’s seen far too many lung cancer patients in her career. She wished New York followed Pennsylvania’s lead. “Anything that makes it harder for people to get addicted is great,” said Thomas, 84. New York Daily News tkapp@nydailynews.com (Trevor Kapp NEW YORK DAILY NEWS ) Sun, 01 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT