Tobacco use banned for all at Hillsborough detention facilities

Tobacco products will be banned from the grounds of all Department of Detention locations in Hillsborough County, effective Oct. 1.

Inmates already hadn't been allowed to use tobacco products, but the change will affect detention staff personnel and the public, sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.

Department of Detention locations include Orient Road Jail, Falkenburg Road Jail, a juvenile assessment center, a criminal registration area and a work release center. Court security deputies also will be impacted.

A similar ban might be coming at other Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office locations, Col. Jim Previtera told staff members in an e-mail last week.

The discussion about banning tobacco came from employee comments about issues associated with some personnel getting more breaks due to their tobacco use, Previtera told the Tribune today.

Previtera also has spoken with a health insurance executive, who said many private corporations have banned tobacco use "to promote employee health." As a result of tobacco bans, he said, work forces have had reduced health care insurance premiums.

"I realize this order will not be popular with those that use tobacco products, but in the end, the measure is likely to assist the agency in controlling our rising health care costs and contribute to the health of our employees," he wrote. "For those who use tobacco products, my hope is that you will find yourself feeling better and with a few more dollars in your pocket each week."

Tobacco products are contraband for inmates, so the ban will minimize the chance for inmates to get their hands on tobacco, Previtera said.

Previtera, a former smokeless tobacco user, said the feedback he has received so far from the staff has been positive.

Previtera said one employee, who smokes a pack of cigarettes a day, told him the ban will be motivation to quit because his wife won't let him smoke at home.

"It's just common sense," Previtera said of the ban. "We need a healthy work force. The benefits far outweigh any minor dissention."

Previtera wrote in the e-mail that he knows tobacco is "addictive and demanding" and that there are health and cost risks from using tobacco.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, causing 400,000 deaths and leading to $50 billion in direct medical costs each year, Previtera wrote.

In his e-mail, he told employees that those who need help quitting tobacco could "utilize Humana's free Web-based health coaching program through LifeSync."

"Please appreciate the intent of this measure and understand the benefit to the tobacco user and the entire organization," he wrote.

Deputies in uniform already aren't supposed to use tobacco products, Previtera said.