Shreveport, LA Prepares to Go Smoke-free

Wow, what a whirlwind You're the Cure advocates in Shreveport, Louisiana have experienced, as we've urged Mayor Adrian Perkins and the Shreveport City Council to pass a comprehensive smoke-free ordinance to protect all Shreveport workers from secondhand smoke.

On June 9, the Shreveport City Council voted 5-3 in support having all workplaces be smoke-free by August 8, 2020. However, a few days later, Council Member Jerry Bowman, who voted in favor of the smoke-free ordinance, introduced an ordinance to give casinos an extra year to go smoke-free.

On July 14, council members voted in favor of an amended ordinance that gives casinos extra time (till August 2021) to implement smoke-free specifically on their gaming floors. Mayor Perkins signed the ordinance into law the following week. Sadly, the floors are where the most toxic level of secondhand smoke exposure occurs. The American Heart Association opposed this amendment because it allows patrons and employees to continue to be exposed to secondhand smoke. Now, the council is considering to delay implementation for bars as well.

Through it all, Council Members LeVette Fuller and John Nickelson have been championing the issue behind the scenes and at city council meetings. If you live in Shreveport, please join us in thanking Council Members Fuller and Nickelson for their unwavering support to protect all local employees from secondhand smoke.

Thank you to You're the Cure advocates in Shreveport, who have expressed support for smoke-free workplaces. Please know, as many businesses prepare to be smoke-free in a few weeks, we remain committed to protect casino and bar workers from being exposed harmful secondhand smoke, which is a major risk factor for heart disease, an underlying condition of COVID-19. We will monitor how the city goes smoke-free and will let Shreveport advocates know how they can help.