Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death and disease, and cancer remains the leading cause of death in Kentucky. Reducing exposure to this deadly product can have a significant impact on improving health and saving lives nationwide, but particularly in Kentucky. Therefore, the idea that Churchill Downs is opening their Turfway Park here and refusing to make the new facility smoke-free is hard to believe.
The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, along with other health organizations and local hospital systems, has called on Turfway Park to open this September as a 100% smoke-free indoor property.
Opening smoke-free would protect the lives, health, and lungs of the employees, patrons, and their families and, research shows, would even benefit Turfway Park’s bottom line.
Indoor smoking in casinos threatens the health of employees and guests, a fact the U.S. Surgeon General made clear 16 years ago in a landmark report affirming the harmful effects of secondhand smoke. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “there is no risk-free level of secondhand smoke, and even brief exposure can cause immediate harm.”
Even if facilities create separate spaces for smoking or install ventilation systems, they cannot prevent the spread of or remove all the toxins in secondhand smoke. If Churchill Downs does not open Turfway Park as a smoke-free facility, they will be exposing their employees and guests to immediate harm.
The CDC calls smoke-free indoor casino policies a “public health win,” and new data continue to show it’s also a profitable one. Recent research shows the pandemic has changed consumers’ attitudes regarding smoking in casinos and, in fact, non-smoking properties are outperforming those that allow smoking.
The decision Churchill Downs makes will have a lasting impact.
The 2021 State of Lung Cancer report indicates that Kentucky has the nation’s highest lung cancer incidence rate. The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2022, Kentucky will have 4,990 new cases of lung cancer alone and 2,730 deaths due to the disease. As a leader in Kentucky, Churchill Downs should stand up for the health of our friends and neighbors it will soon employ and for their loyal patrons who shouldn’t have to put their health at risk to enjoy time at Turfway Park.
Turfway Park employees and customers deserve the right to breathe clean air and research shows protecting that right also protects Churchill Downs’s bottom line.
Michelle Zimmerman is associate director of Regional Media Advocacy for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.
