As members of the Breathe Free Committee, we're excited to share that Councilman Cimperman, the Health and Human Services Chair, introduced two pieces of legislation that have the potential to impact rates of smoking and cessation in Cleveland.

The first, Resolution No. 669-15, declares that the City of Cleveland will strive for a tobacco-free workforce by January 2017. The resolution establishes a working group of Council, Mayor's office representatives, and community stakeholders to study employment policies associated with hiring only tobacco-free employees. The working group will also study employment policies offering smoking cessation programs.

Equally important, Ordinance 737-15 would raise the legal smoking age to 21 in the city of Cleveland, which has been evidenced to have significant impact on rates of youth smoking (based on the recent Ohio State University College of Public Health study, Running the Numbers).

Both pieces will be heard at the appropriate council committee levels after council's summer recess for feedback/amendment before passage.

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