Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Praises the St. Paul City Council for Making the City Healthier
Posted on: Wednesday, 11 January 2006, 18:00 CST
EAGAN, Minn., Jan. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota commends the St. Paul City Council for voting to strengthen its smoking ordinance this afternoon.
"The St. Paul City Council should be applauded for their leadership and for their commitment to making their city a healthier place to live and work," said Mark W. Banks, MD, CEO of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota. "This ordinance will protect thousands of workers and citizens from the hazardous effects of exposure to secondhand smoke."
"The scientific evidence proving the human and economic toll of secondhand smoke has been mounting for the last decade. We know that secondhand smoke exposure causes cancer and heart disease in non-smokers and puts workers at significant risk. We're concerned about the rising costs of healthcare in Minnesota. Unless we want to continue bearing the $2 billion annual price tag that tobacco use causes, policy leaders from across the state need to make these kinds of smoke-free policy changes. These are real issues and they affect everyone. St. Paul has shown significant leadership in tackling a leading cause of preventable death in Minnesota."
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, with headquarters in the St. Paul suburb of Eagan, was chartered in 1933 as Minnesota's first health plan and continues to carry out its charter mission today: to promote a wider, more economical and timely availability of health services for the people of Minnesota. A not-for-profit, taxable organization, Blue Cross is the largest health plan based in Minnesota, covering 2.6 million members in Minnesota and nationally through its health plans or plans administered by its affiliated companies. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, headquartered in Chicago.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota
CONTACT: Karl Oestreich of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota,+1-651-662-1502
Source: PRNewswire
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