WASHINGTON, Aug. 12 (UPI) -- The secretary of health and human services praised the announcement by Pizza Hut and KFC that they would ban smoking in all of their restaurants nationally, saying it would help with efforts to reduce both smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke.
"I applaud the decision by the Pizza Hut and KFC restaurant chains," HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt said in a statement.
"We've known for decades that smoking is bad for your health and is the leading preventable cause of death and disease. What starts as a single puff can become a death sentence for millions of Americans," Leavitt said.
Yum! Brands, in Louisville, Ky., the parent owner of Pizza Hut and KFC (formerly known as Kentucky Fried Chicken), said in a statement Thursday both restaurants would enact a no-smoking policy beginning next week.
"KFC and Pizza Hut are concerned about our customers' and employees' health regarding the dangers of second-hand smoke," KFC President Gregg Dedrick and Pizza Hut President Peter Hearl said in a joint statement.
"We are taking this action today to help heighten awareness of second-hand smoke issues raised by the U.S. Surgeon General, Richard Carmona, who has indicated second-hand smoke may be harmful and hazardous to the health of the general public," Dedrick and Hearl said. "In our opinion, going smoke-free is simply the right thing to do."
The restaurant chains will begin posting "No Smoking" signs starting next week, the Yum! statement said.
The ban applies only to company-owned restaurants in the United States, which includes 1,200 KFCs and 1,675 Pizza Huts. The Yum! statement said the company would encourage the franchise operators to participate in the ban, which includes 4,200 KFC and 4,600 Pizza Hut restaurants.
Yum! also owns Taco Bell, Long John Silver's and A&W All American Foods, which have already gone smoke-free in the United States.
Leavitt noted that the ban's impact on reducing exposure to secondhand smoke also would be important.
"Second-hand smoke is also harmful and hazardous to the health of the general public and is particularly dangerous to children," he said. "If we are going to be serious about improving health and preventing disease, we must continue to drive down tobacco use and exposure to second-hand smoke in this country. Efforts such as these are vital to our success."
According to the American Lung Association, smoking contributes to the death of approximately 440,000 people each year in the United States, and another 8.6 million suffer from at least one disease related to smoking. This amounts to more than $150 billion in healthcare costs annually.
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