As a Northern Kentucky resident, I was excited to learn about the revitalization of Turfway Park since it is a significant economic opportunity for our area, but I was saddened to learn that the park will open with a smoking parlor.
As a lung cancer survivor whose cancer was caused by secondhand smoke exposure in the workplace, I believe no one, including those who get the 400 jobs promised as a part of this development project, should have to choose between their health and a paycheck.
Opening Turfway Park Racing & Gaming entirely smoke-free would be a win for the health of patrons and employees, and it is a good business decision.
Allowing smoking in Turfway will take away employees’ and other customers’ individual right to breathe smoke-free air while working or enjoying all the park will have to offer. We all have the right to work, make a living, and support our families without breathing in secondhand smoke, a deadly mixture of more than 7,000 chemicals. Not only does eliminating exposure to secondhand smoke reduce workers’ long-term risk of lung cancer and cardiovascular disease, but it also reduces the risk of hospitalizations and death from heart, stroke and lung diseases.
Opening smoke-free doesn’t just make sense for Turfway from a public health perspective, it could also help their bottom line. Studies on the impact of smoke-free gaming laws in Illinois, Delaware and Kentucky showed that going completely smoke-free did not affect total gaming revenue, something Churchill Downs knows all too well since their other parks in Kentucky are smoke-free.
If the park allows smoking, it could see less revenue, meaning the local communities and the state would receive less tax revenue. When the project was introduced, residents were told that the park would contribute significantly to Kentucky’s economy and tourism, but how will it do that if people won’t come due to the secondhand smoke?
Research shows us that not only will opening smoke-free have no negative impact on Turfway’s profits, it will also reduce the park’s overhead costs by not incurring additional costs for housekeeping and maintenance, increased health, life, and fire insurance premiums, higher workers’ compensation payments, higher worker absenteeism, and lower worker productivity. So, as you can see, opening smoke-free is a win, win for Turfway.
As someone who has heard the words “you have cancer,” marking Cancer Prevention Awareness Month this month is significant to me. I want to do my part to ensure fewer Kentucky residents hear those three devastating words, and that is why I am asking Churchill Downs to open Turfway Park Racing & Gaming smoke-free.
Joe Geraci, a lung cancer survivor, is a resident of Edgewood.
Mr.Hagan, my favorite teacher in secondary school at Seneca in Louisville, Kentucky, said “Secondary smoke is as bad as primary smoke.”