Existence of and Public Support for Smokefree Policies and Laws
Each year between 2005 and 2009, about 41,000 nonsmoking people in the United States died prematurely from heart disease or lung cancer caused by exposure to secondhand smoke (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2014). One of the four key goals the Wyoming Tobacco Prevention and Control Program (TPCP) shares with the federal tobacco prevention and control program is to decrease exposure to secondhand smoke (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2017a). The majority of Wyoming adults agree with the statement, “Secondhand smoke is very harmful to one’s health.” Further, 79% of Wyoming adults would support a law making the indoor areas of restaurants smokefree, and 80% would support a law for smokefree indoor work areas (WYSAC, 2018). Enactment, implementation, and enforcement of smokefree policies and laws protect the public from the dangers of secondhand smoke. Yet, 71% of Wyoming residents are not covered by a comprehensive smokefree indoor air law, making them vulnerable to secondhand smoke in public places.