Smokers are huffing and businesses fuming over a controversial new proposal to drastically reduce the number of stores in San Francisco that can sell cigarettes. Since 2003, retailers selling tobacco products in San Francisco have had to apply for a special permit. The permitting process helps the city keep track of sellers and crack down on those vending to minors, officials said. But now there are too many permits citywide—particularly in low-income neighborhoods—according to city officials and anti-tobacco advocates, who have created legislation that would greatly reduce the number of s ... Jump to full article >>

To further expand its smoke-free environment, Susquehanna Health has adopted a new policy that prohibits the hiring of smokers and other tobacco users. Health system officials and legal experts noted the policy, to take effect Jan. 1, is perfectly legal under state law. It affects every position within the health system. “In Pennsylvania, tobacco users are not a protected class under the law,” explained health system spokeswoman Tracie Witter. “So prohibiting the hiring of tobacco users is not discrimination.” Everyone who seeks health system employment must apply onlin ... Jump to full article >>

[caption id="attachment_2643" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Smokers are huffing and businesses fuming over a controversial new proposal to drastically reduce the number of stores in The City that can sell cigarettes."][/caption] Since 2003, retailers hawking tobacco products in San Francisco have had to apply for a special permit. The permitting process helps The City keep track of sellers and crack down on those vending to minors, officials said. But now there are too many permits citywide — particularly in low-income neighborhoods — according to city officials and anti-tobacco a ... Jump to full article >>

The likely moderation in tobacco business growth and forays into less profitable categories are the primary reasons to exit the stock at these valuations. Building a brand reputation in the personal products business may entail high spending. Adarsh Gopalakrishnan Investors can consider booking profits in ITC shares, as the stock valuations (30 times trailing earnings, at Rs 254) seem to have outpaced the medium-term growth prospects. Forays into businesses less profitable than the core tobacco business and the likely moderation in growth rates for tobacco are the primary reasons for the reco ... Jump to full article >>

Offering resources to help employees quit smoking can improve wellness, increase corporate moral and reduce health-care costs to employers. Employees who smoke will cost businesses in direct health-care costs including more visits to health-care facilities, more hospital admissions and higher average insurance premiums. The indirect health-care costs amount to a loss in productivity in increased absenteeism. Some things to think about during Lung Cancer Awareness and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Awareness month. Fact: Smoking is the single largest preventable cause of disease and prem ... Jump to full article >>

Extinguished: For smokers such as Maryanne Morris and Steve Longmire, lighting up in The City could become more difficult under a bill backed by Supervisor Eric Mar. SAN FRANCISCO — A San Francisco lawmaker is reigniting stalled legislation that would further limit where smokers can light up in The City, hoping amendments to the bill will convince businesses that it won’t be a drag. The controversial legislation — first introduced by Supervisor Chris Daly last year and now being pushed by Supervisor Eric Mar — would forbid smoking in a slew of new settings, adding to existing bans in ... Jump to full article >>

CHARLESTON, W.VA. — Kanawha County health officials have no intention of granting Tri-State Racetrack an exemption to the county’s clean indoor-air regulation. Earlier this month, track owner Hartman & Tyner Inc. asked members of the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department to pass an exemption to the air regulation to allow a nonsmoking section at Tri-State. Dan Adkins, Hartman & Tyner’s vice president, told health officials he is convinced the air regulation is responsible for a big chunk of a $15 million loss in revenue at the Nitro racetrack and casino. The indoor- ... Jump to full article >>

All Vermont workplaces become smoke free today as a new state law goes into effect, banning the designated smoking areas that were allowed under the previous law. Public places have been virtually smoke free since the 1987 Smoking in the Workplace law was passed, and then updated under the Clean Indoor Air act of 1993. Those laws permitted businesses to have segregated areas indoors where smokers could light up. The new law, which lawmakers approved this past session, makes it illegal to smoke anywhere inside a public building. “We have known about the dangers of second-hand smoking for ... Jump to full article >>

Last week, Hav-A-Tampa Cigar Co. announced the closing of its iconic cigar factory, which has been operating in Tampa since 1902. Hav-A-Tampa’s closing is devastating for its nearly 500 employees. The factory’s demise is also tragic for our community. There has never been a product that has promoted Tampa more than legendary Hav-a-Tampa cigars. For more than 100 years, Hav-A-Tampa has incorporated our city into its world-famous brand name. Soon the factory will be gone. It is a sad day for the city of Tampa and its historic cigar industry, but the greatest tragedy is that this fact ... Jump to full article >>

The City of Eagle was well on it’s way to becoming the first smoke-free city in Idaho, until last week, at least. Councilman Michael Huffaker put a stop to the city’s Clean Indoor Air Ordinance when he changed his vote on June 23. The ordinance would have prohibited smoking at all businesses with more than five employees, including standalone bars, and would limit where smokers could light up outside, within city limits. At the June 9 City Council meeting the ordinance was read for the first time and passed with a vote of 3 to 2. It seemed as if residents could soon breathe fresh ... Jump to full article >>

British American Tobacco Plc bought a majority stake in a top Indonesian cigarette firm on Wednesday, lifting its share in the world’s fifth-largest and fast-growing market as it looks to offset flat sales elsewhere. BAT, maker of Dunhill and Lucky Strike cigarettes, said it paid $494 million for an 85 percent stake in PT Bentoel Internasional Investama, Indonesia’s fourth-largest cigarette maker by volume, and would buy up the remaining shares by the end of August. London-based world number-two cigarette maker BAT, like other major players, is looking to expand in growing emerging ... Jump to full article >>