Dickens’ Bill to Ban Smoking Near Hospitals

City Councilwoman Inez Dickens, D-Morningside Heights and Harlem, has introduced a bill to ban smoking within 25 feet of city hospital entrances.

The ban was initially suggested by doctors and administrators at Harlem Hospital on Lenox Avenue, according to Dickens’ legislative liason Matthew Bitts. The number of residents suffering from asthma is almost five times the national average in the area.
According to its Web site, the hospital’s “Asthma Prevention Project is researching the causes and solutions to this health problem.”

“The bill is about preventive health,” said Lynnette Velasco, a special assistant to Dickens. “The ideal is to create a protective bubble because once you get inside the hospital you are protected, but once you’re outside, you are no longer protected and can be the victim of second-hand smoke. An ounce of protection is worth a pound of cure.”

“It’s a good idea,” St. Luke’s Security Supervisor Alvin Robinsonsaid. “I don’t think it’s going to work. There are already no smoking signs around here and people just ignore them.... They’ve [police officers] got better things to do than fine people for smoking in front of hospitals.”

A part of the Council’s Health Committee, Dickens’ push for preventive health measures stems partially from her own experience as a former smoker, according to Velasco.

But some say that the ban is unfair to smokers. “They talk about their rights because they are not smokers,” said Michael Wright, who was smoking outside St. Luke’s where he was visiting relatives. “What about my rights? I don’t see a wall of smoke here ... Asthma patients would have to walk past me even if I was on the next block.”

According to Bitts, the first steps to recovery and rehabilitation for those undergoing treatment of heart disease and asthma occur outside in hospital green spaces. “Often times people use those green spaces for smoking.”

Having evolved over the past few months, the bill is still in its early stages and lacks an official title. Staff members at Dickens’ office refer to it as the “bubble bill,” Velasco said.

“Everybody smokes,” said Anthony McNeill, who was smoking outside a hospital entrance. “Like in my case, people are coming out here because they are stressed out because their loved ones are ill. You want to take a smoking break and you still need to be close to your loved ones.”

As of now, Dickens has not officially gauged the response of fellow council members or residents of the community.