3 months ago
Beginning next year, patients at Georgia's mental hospitals will no longer be able to light up.
The plan to ban smoking at the seven hospitals is set to take
effect Jan. 5 and is designed to make the patients and facilities
healthier.
National statistics show that some 75 percent of people with
mental illness or addictions smoke. Tom Wilson, spokesman for the state Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental
Disabilities, said people with serious mental illness tend to die
25 years younger than the general public in part because of their smoking.
But some mental health experts say it's not a good idea to take
away a coping mechanism from a person already in emotional
distress.
Associated Press
