On Clean Indoor Air Act’s 10th anniversary, elected officials, advocates call for extending its protections to all Pa. workers
PITTSBURGH, September 11, 2018 – On the 10th anniversary of the start of Pennsylvania’s Clean Indoor Air Act (CIAA), elected officials joined with advocates to celebrate the health benefits of a decade of the law and to call for extending those same benefits to all employees in Pennsylvania.
The law took effect on Sept. 11, 2008, creating standardized rules requiring most Pennsylvania businesses to go smoke-free. Since then, the vast majority of businesses in the commonwealth have gone smoke-free. However, due to broad exemptions for bars and casinos, thousands of employees at more than 1,700 businesses are still exposed to tobacco smoke in their workplace.
House Democratic Caucus Chairman Dan Frankel, D-Allegheny, said, “This is a simple matter of fairness. If you work in most businesses in Pennsylvania, your lungs are protected. But if your job is one of the more than 1,700 that have asked to be exempt from the law, you’re not. It’s been a decade. We know the law works. Let’s make it work for everyone. All Pennsylvania workers have a right to breathe free.”
Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa, D-Allegheny, said, “It’s simply unacceptable to improve working conditions for most Pennsylvanians, but selectively choose some workers to be exposed to the known dangers of second-hand smoke. Ten years is already too long. We should pass legislation to improve the health conditions of all workplaces.”
Allegheny County passed its own clean indoor air ordinance in 2007, before the legislature passed the CIAA. However, state law preempts this ordinance, which would have ensured smoke-free environments in all drinking and eating establishments. Electronic cigarettes are not included in the preemption, and since March 2017, the county treats e-cigarettes like tobacco products when it comes to indoor use — a step ahead of the state.
“Concerns about air pollution and its impacts is something I’ve heard from residents my entire career. It’s one of the reasons that we decided to challenge the state law and prohibit smoking in facilities throughout this county. While the state took action after that, it’s not enough,” said County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, who led the effort to make Allegheny County smoke-free as council president. “We made the decision to act on a county level because of our residents, and on their behalf. This is no exception. We cannot meet our goal of becoming the healthiest county in the country when employees are still exposed to tobacco smoke in their workplace.”
The elected officials were joined at the Morningside VFW today by representatives from the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Breathe Free Pennsylvania Coalition, Tobacco Free Allegheny and the UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.
Bipartisan legislation to strengthen the protections afforded by the Clean Indoor Air Act has been introduced many times over the past decade, including H.B. 1309 and S.B. 519 in the 2017-2018 legislative session.
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HARRISBURG, June 26, 2017 — Lawmakers from the state Senate and House of Representatives, along with Wolf Administration officials and advocates, denounced the latest attempt in Washington to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act during a rally today at the State Capitol.
The lawmakers said the Republican-led efforts in Washington will have an immediate and devastating impact on Pennsylvanians’ health care and will add to an already-gaping budget deficit.
The so-called ‘Better Care Reconciliation Act’ is not better care, unless you’re part of the wealthy elite who will benefit financially from deep cuts to programs, service and critical care,” said Democratic Leader Sen. Jay Costa (D-Allegheny). “This is an attack on the working poor, elderly, children and Pennsylvanians with disabilities and we will not stand for it. We speak out today because we care too deeply.
“Removing health care coverage for hard working families, senior citizens and children is sickening. This effort out of Washington to repeal a landmark and historic health care act isn’t just playing politics, it’s risking lives,” said state Sen. Vincent Hughes (D-Philadelphia), the Democratic chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “The only people who make out in all of this are the wealthiest individuals in the nation. Repealing Obamacare will hurt the Pennsylvania budget but, more importantly, it will jeopardize critical coverage for our most vulnerable citizens.”
“When the Affordable Care Act came out, people could actually get coverage and care. We must not go back to where we were before,” said state Sen. Judy Schwank (D-Berks), Democratic chairwoman of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee. “Health care is a right of every citizen. Ensuring that individuals and families have access to affordable coverage is a reasonable right. This is part of what a just and humane society does.”
“Both plans coming out of Washington will be disastrous for folks who need, want and deserve coverage. The plans dole out tax cuts to the rich on the backs of the poor, the middle class and the elderly,” said state Sen. Sharif Street (D-Philadelphia), the Democratic chairman of the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee. “We must stand up collectively and let Congress know that these health care efforts will be devastating to folks across Pennsylvania.”
Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, Pennsylvania’s uninsured rate is at its lowest point in history, and uncompensated care costs have dropped dramatically, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services.
One million Pennsylvanians rely on the Affordable Care Act for health coverage, including 716,000 individuals who have benefitted from the state’s Medicaid expansion and another 400,000 who have health benefits through ACA’s health care marketplace.
Both the Senate and House proposals in Congress phase out Medicaid expansion and inflict deep cuts to Medicaid. The Republican proposals will shift the cost of health care to state governments, make private insurance more expensive for older adults and lower income populations, cuts insurance subsidies for low-income and middle-class Americans in order to provide tax cuts for the rich, and defund Planned Parenthood for a year.
The lawmakers encourage constituents to share their health care story on social media using the hashtag #PASpeaksOut
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