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Prevent smoking suicides

The Spokesman-Review

Relative to the Spokesman’s articles “Congress might regulate tobacco” (March 4) and “Hospitals won’t help patients end lives” (March 6), I have the following observations.

Four hundred thousand smokers die each year, with the cost being $96 billion. Furthermore, by secondhand smoke, nonsmokers in the same atmosphere are sometimes affected as well. At the same time we address the issue of our hospitals allowing and avoiding doctors to help patients who are dying to do so comfortably and over a period of less time, treatment and money in the hospitals. Our hospitals also are free to employ smokers and provide areas of doing same on the hospital property just outside the walls of the building.

Please recognize that tobacco smoking is suicidal. Hospitals should do more and all they can to avoid encouraging tobacco smokers, such as not employing such or providing areas to smoke on hospital property.

Dr. George Bagby

Spokane

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