Smokers lost another bit of tobacco-legal territory when the Montana Clean Indoor Air Act took full effect today, banning smoking in all casinos and bars, a move that will improve the health of many - smokers and nonsmokers alike.

Some patrons will take this forced opportunity to cut back or quit the habit, and the state is ready to help. The Tobacco Quit Line offers free counseling and four weeks of free nicotine replacement at 800-784-8669.

Other patrons will move into the great outdoors for their smoking breaks. Several taverns in Billings and communities around the state have constructed special smoking areas for their customers to light up in. Patios, porches and smoking rooms have been springing up adjacent to these establishments to provide a designated smoking place that meets the letter of the law.

The Montana became the 18th state to ban smoking from all public buildings, including bars and casinos. Smoking has been banned from some public places in 14 other states.

The state's 2005 Legislature comfortably passed the measure 98-51. It took effect later that year, but bars and casinos were exempted until Oct. 1, 2009. There were hopes in some quarters that the 2009 Legislature would extend that exemption. No surprise that that didn't happen. State health officials say 75 percent of Montanans support the ban on smoking.

An individual who violates the Montana Clean Indoor Air Act can be fined up to $100. Businesses that allow smoking can also be penalized. First offenses carry a warning; second, a written reprimand; third, $100 fine; fourth, $200 fine; and for a fifth or subsequent offense, $500 fine.

We know that many people believe that such laws are unfairly making smokers the last pariah. Some 20 percent of Americans are smokers and 16 percent of Montanans light up. But this law does not outlaw smoking. It simply forbids it in public places where smokers and nonsmokers gather to conduct business or seek food, drink or entertainment.

The links between smoking and cancer are well established and the nation's smoking rate has dropped dramatically in the past 40 years. And recent research suggests that public smoking bans do more than unfairly persecute smokers. The bans have lead to dramatic declines in heart attacks.

Two research teams came to this conclusion in independent studies recently released. They examined evidence from more than a dozen locations in Europe, Canada and the U.S. that had imposed smoking restrictions. The results were hard to ignore.

There was an almost immediate drop in heart attacks, the researchers showed. And the longer the bans were in place, the more pronounced the decline - an average of 36 percent, said one study. We're reminded of a recent study in Helena that showed that the annual heart attack rate dropped 40 percent after the city banned smoking in public buildings. The rates increased after a court suspended the ban.

Nonsmokers - patrons and employees - will benefit greatly from the ban as secondhand smoke is eliminated. Smokers will have a greater incentive to change their habits.

Some big adjustments are called for as the law is fully implemented today. We're confident that Montanans will recognize that this law is good public health policy.

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