Now that it has been a little over two months since the smoking ban in Michigan went into effect, what is happening to businesses? It is no surprise that we have seen a significant difference when going out after work or on the weekends. The Michigan Department of Community Health seems to be very happy about the ban for obvious reasons. The number of calls into the states Quit Hotline is up 20 percent from previous months.
So with the health advocates very excited about the new air quality in public establishments, what is this doing to the business of bars and other businesses? One Macomb County bar owner expresses their anger in the Michigan Messenger. The owner of Kick Ass Sports Bar states that the impact is huge. This Macomb County bar has suffered almost an 80 percent decrease in normal profits. “The remaining non-smokers have not stepped up to fill the void.” Nick Kyprianides said. These regulations are going nowhere and if current amendments on the table pass the laws may become even stricter and begin to include more businesses in Michigan.
When the legislation went into effect it excluded casino gaming floors and cigar bars. Democratic state Senator, Ray Basham, is sponsoring an amendment to the legislation to include the gaming floors of Michigan casinos. The U.S. Surgeon General stated that there is no safe amount of secondhand smoke and Basham completely agrees. So how will this amendment impact the casinos? Perhaps with the decreased amount of smoke in the establishment more people will adventure to them is possible but unlikely if you look at the issues Kyprianides is having.
The profits of local establishments are in fact not disappearing, they are just coming from different areas that were not ever thought to be as successful. The Kick Ass Sports Bar has suffered some losses, but profits from the kitchen at this establishment are up 25 percent. With more and more locations becoming smoke free it is clear that this is going to improve the health of Michigan. With more and more businesses offering additional benefits to employees who do not smoke or sponsoring employees who are trying to quit now is really the time. The cost of smoking is just going to continue to increase and the amount of places that a person can smoke in is continuing to decrease.
