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FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 14, 2006
Illinois
Council Urges Cook County Board Not to Apply Smoking Ban
to Nursing
Homes
(Chicago)
– The proposed Cook County ordinance banning smoking
in more than 115 suburbs should not apply to nursing
homes, says the Illinois Council on Long Term Care, an
association representing 200 facilities. This ban would
forbid individuals from smoking within 15 feet of public
places, including nearly 100 nursing homes located in
Cook County. The Cook County Board of Commissioners is
scheduled to vote on the ordinance Wednesday. If
approved, these places would have just 60 days to
comply.
“Unlike
bars, restaurants and bowling alleys, nursing homes are
the homes for thousands of Illinois citizens,”
said Terrence Sullivan, executive director of the
Illinois Council. “People should have the right to
smoke in the places where they live. This is really a
human rights issue,” he said.
“Federal
law protects the right of nursing home residents to
smoke in their own homes,” adds Sullivan. “The
county ordinance should be amended to allow nursing home
residents to smoke in safe, designated areas of their
buildings.”
Thousands
of nursing home employees and residents have been
calling the 17 members of the Cook County Board of
Commissioners to ask commissioners to exempt nursing
homes from the ordinance.
“These
frail and elderly residents shouldn’t have to go outside, more than fifteen feet away from their own
homes, to be able to smoke,” said Sullivan.
“During extreme weather, this requirement will
place their health in peril. These residents, like all
Cook County citizens, should have the right to smoke in
their own homes.”
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The Illinois Council on Long Term Care is a
professional association of nearly 200 nursing
facilities committed to quality residential health care
in Illinois through a productive and responsible
partnership between the private and public sectors. The
Council represents more than 26,000 nursing home
professionals serving more than 37,000 residents.
Helpful information for seniors and families can be
found at the Council’s Web site www.nursinghome.org.
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