BOSTON (AP) – When a workplace smoking ban starts in Boston on Monday, residents of one nursing home will still be able to light up as city officials decide whether nursing homes are private residences and exempt from the ban.
The Boston Public Health Commission has granted the Marian Manor in South Boston a 60-day waiver from the ban.
State Rep. Brian Joyce, whose mother, Marjorie Joyce, is a smoker and resident of the home, asked officials to consider how longtime smokers would fare if they’re suddenly forced to quit.
“I suppose some zealots would like to prohibit smoking in private homes too, but until we reach that stage, it is unfair to single out seniors whose homes are a nursing home,” Brian Joyce told the Boston Herald.
John Auerbach, director of the city’s health commission, said Marian Manor was the only nursing home to ask for a waiver and the board needed time to make a ruling.
Marjorie Joyce said she was “delighted” by the waiver.
“I find it very relaxing to smoke, and I don’t want to have to stop at this time in my life,” she said.
As Boston, Watertown, Framingham and Saugus prepare for a complete restaurant and bar smoking ban starting Monday, Methuen may relax its own ban.
The Methuen Board of Health is considering a set of rule changes that would allow smoking in restaurants while keeping the smoke away from nonsmokers.
The proposed changes include building separate smoking rooms with ventilation systems and designing entrances so nonsmokers don’t have to walk through smoking sections.
Owner Lou J. Zaharopoulos told The Eagle-Tribune of Lawrence the project would be worth the investment because the smoking ban “has definitely hurt our business quite considerably.”
The smoking ban started last March, but has gradually become less strict. Under pressure from restaurant owners, the health board decided to let people smoke in restaurants after 10 p.m. if food is no longer served.
None of the original board members who passed the ban last year remain on the board, and in September, the new health officials decided to allow smoking in the separate bar area at T.G.I. Friday’s restaurant, promising that other restaurants would be given permission later.
Some restaurant owners say the smoking ban hurts business because customers can go to New Hampshire or nearby cities and towns where smoking policies aren’t as restrictive.
AP-ES-05-03-03 1119EDT
Send questions/comments to the editors.
