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Massachusetts Smoke-free Workplace Law

The Massachusetts Smoke-free Workplace Law went into effect July 5, 2004, and is intended to protect employees and the public from secondhand smoke. The Massachusetts Smoke-free Workplace Law prohibits smoking in workplaces including private offices, taxis, restaurants and bars. There are only a few exceptions to this comprehensive law. Additional information can be found at the Massachusetts Department of Health Tobacco Control Program website.

Helping Smokers in Your Workplace

The business case for addressing tobacco use in our workforce is a compelling one. Smoking is one of the nation's costliest health problems in human, social and economic terms. Given the significant investment that employers make in health insurance for their workers, it makes sense to consider investing in protecting the health of the workforce.

Tobacco use is estimated to cost employers more than $3,000 per year per smoker, due chiefly to absenteeism, lost productivity and increased costs for insurance. Adult tobacco cessation services rate the highest among 30 recommended clinical preventive services, based on health impact and value (cost-effectiveness).

What Employers and Labor Organizations Can Do

Here are some steps to consider:

• Effective cessation methods are available. Assess the return on investment of purchasing cessation services for your workforce.
• Partner with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to implement QuitWorks in worksites that have an on-site clinician (e.g. wellness manager, EAP, or nurse).
• Distribute information to your employers about the state's free quitline for smokers at 1-800-TRY-TO-STOP (1-800-879-8678).
• Create an environment that is conducive to quitting and that supports smokers' quit attempts.

The Massachusetts Consortium for a Healthy Workforce is a newly formed organization dedicated to improving the health and well-being of Massachusetts employees by promoting and supporting worksite health initiatives that meet or exceed national standards. Membership includes corporations, government organizations, nonprofit policy and research institutions, health-related professional and trade associations, labor organizations, and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Consortium Goals

Many of the leading causes of premature death and disability in the United States can be prevented. More than one-half of all deaths are attributable to health behaviors such as the use of tobacco, alcohol abuse, poor diet, lack of physical activity, and other behavioral risk factors. We believe that by developing a network to share our collective experience and expertise, we move towards a healthier, more productive workforce. The consortium will explore purchasing strategies as well as partnerships with specialized wellness and disease management vendors and health plans.

As the leading cause of preventable death and a major cost to employers, the consortium will address tobacco cessation first while we also proceed in identifying other priority health issues in the workforce.

Tobacco Cessation Initiatives

• Investigate the prevalence of tobacco use as well as understand the health and cost impact to employers
• Identify evidence based tobacco cessation services and best practice benefit coverage to aid employers with their tobacco cessation efforts, including state resources
• Assist employers in increasing access, awareness and utilization of cessation programs to support smoke-free workplaces, as the state implements the Smokefree Workplace law
• Assist employers in integrating tobacco cessation into already existing wellness and health promotion programs as well as occupational health and safety programs, realizing that tobacco cessation is an important part of efforts to insure healthy workers in healthy workplaces
• Identify benefits purchasing practices that include or increase the level of cessation coverage in the healthcare benefits plans they offer

Other Prevention Initiatives

• Address similar issues for other health risks such as obesity, at-risk drinking, lack of exercise and chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, asthma, arthritis, etc.
• Identify the cost benefits of prevention and management of these conditions
• Investigate evidence-based programming and benefit coverage to address specific conditions
• Improving knowledge and access to resources for employers to use
• Assist employers in addressing the challenges of offering health improvement programs
• Prepare toolkits to assist employers in driving utilization

For more information or to join the Consortium, email Anh Ðào Kolbe at Anh.Dao.Kolbe@state.ma.us

Founding Partners: Raytheon, John Snow, Inc., Massachusetts Municipal Association, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, UMass Medical School, American Cancer Society, Boston Public Health Commission, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and UMass Lowell: The Organized Labor & Tobacco Control Network, Emerson Hospital, Johnson and Johnson.