Have you ever sat at a winning slot machine or table game and have a person sit right next to you smoking a cigar or cigarette? You can’t breathe, and you don’t want to give up your winning seat. Yes, there are nonsmoking areas, but they have limited table games and slot machines.
Casinos are now the entertainment centers for senior citizens. Have Missouri elected officials or medical providers visited a casino lately? What’s up with casinos receiving exceptions to smoking bans?
In 2004, I had stage 4 cancer supposedly caused by secondhand smoke. I have never smoked a day in my life.
There should be no smoking in all public places. Companies who allow smoking should pay much higher premiums than nonsmoking companies. What about casino employees who have to stand there in a cloud of cigar and cigarette smoke? Jobs are hard to find, and sometimes working in a smoking place is all that is available.
If our elected officials can’t get a ban on smoking in public places approved, then put it on the ballot. The surgeon general has a warning on smoke products, but the state does nothing to protect the health of the people of Missouri.
All voting people, stand up and call your representative to make Missouri a smoke-free state. This includes banning electronic cigarette products in public places as well.