Written by Rupert Kircz | Saturday, 27 June 2009 | There are 0 comments
The images will not be subtle in message or in size
At Ukmedix News we love the attitude that the New York health authorities have to the health of people in the city. Since Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been in charge he has had a Gung Ho, no nonsense, shoot from the hip attitude to unhealthy habits. Smoking has been declared a public enemy and Mayor Bloomberg is not taking any prisoners!
His latest initiative is the hard hitting campaign which will see very graphic and unpleasant images of the dangers of smoking being displayed in tobacco shops all around New York City.
Sarah Perl, the Assistant City Health Department Commissioner explained that in the same way that the tobacco industry uses imagery to encourage people to smoke they wanted to respond with other images encouraging people not to smoke. She said that by smoking you would not end up “on a mountaintop in the snow," referring to an image often used by smoking companies to associate their products with clean air.
New York City health officials reckon that they have already cut the number of people smoking in the city by almost 30 percent and hope that this new campaign will boost this figure. The images will not be subtle in message or in size. The smallest ones will be 12in. by 18in. and the largest ones 36in. by 36in. meaning that they cannot be missed at tobacco sale points. A typical image will show a picture of a rotting lung and all of them are designed to shock.
In line with established procedure a public hearing on the new rules will take place on July 30th and should everything go according to plan the New York City Board of Health should give the proposal the green light sometime in September 2009.
Smoking cessation campaigns and the smoking ban in public places have already saved New York City millions in health care costs and all public health officials of all countries, cities and towns should remember that an investment in smoking cessation initiatives will derive not only good health for citizens but also reap financial rewards in the long term.
