Recently, the Massachusetts Senate, under President Robert Travaglini, demonstrated its commitment to public health and to the safety of workers in Massachusetts by voting in favor of legislation that would make Massachusetts work sites 100 percent smoke-free. Sen. Frederick Berry, D-Peabody, was one of the 29 members who voted in favor of the legislation.

The Tobacco Free Mass Coalition applauds the Senate’s stand against the deadly effects of secondhand smoke, the third leading cause of preventable death and disease in the nation. Secondhand smoke is a Class A carcinogen, along with asbestos, radioactive plutonium and benzene, and there is no safe level of exposure.

Each year, more than 53,000 nonsmokers die from breathing somebody else’s smoke, and in Massachusetts, more than 1,000 people will die this year.

Sen. Berry deserves much credit for his leadership in this issue, and the Coalition thanks him and looks forward to Gov. Romney’s signature.

Diane Pickles, Executive Director
Mass. Coalition for a Healthy Future
Framingham