Smoking ban starts in Dayton public housing

HUD rule designed to protect health of residents, staff.

All public housing in Dayton and around the country must be smoke-free under new federal rules.

All public housing in Dayton and around the country is smoke-free starting under new federal rules.

One of the main goals of the U.S. Housing and Urban Development rule is to protect the health of residents and staff from secondhand smoke, which can increase the risk of cancer, asthma attacks, pregnancy complications and other health issues.

Some local housing authorities had already created similar limits on smoking on property. These new rules require local public housing authorities to create policies that ban lit tobacco products in all residences, offices, and outdoor areas that are 25 feet of housing and administrative buildings.

The rule passed November 2016 and local policies had to begin no later than Tuesday.

HUD stated the rule also will save money by preventing smoke damage to housing units, lowering the cost of renovating units in between tenants and reducing insurance costs by lowering the risk of fire-related claims.

Those covered by insurance plans under Ohio Medicaid can get cessation medications and cessation counseling covered under their plans.

Federal guidelines from HUD say that local housing authorities should create enforcement policies that have consistant rules and mulitiple warnings in the event of violations.

“Strict enforcement structures may not provide room for flexibility or behavior change by the tenant. The goal is to provide safe and stable housing for all, not to evict tenants,” HUD stated in its guidelines.