Secondhand smoke exposure in non-smoking areas has risen to 7.1 percent, up from 4 percent in 2022, with hospitals being the areas where violations occur most often, the Health Promotion Administration said in a report released yesterday.
Agency employee Chen Li-chuan (陳麗娟) said that non-smoking regulations are also often flouted at colleges.
Hospitals have been introducing additional measures, Chen said, citing how the Tamsui branch of Mackay Memorial Hospital has set up non-smoking bells, Changhua Christian Hospital has been spreading the message on digital platforms to not smoke around the hospital, and E-Da Hospital has developed a smoke detector to deter people from smoking on the premises.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
Consumer Foundation secretary-general Chen Ya-ping (陳雅萍) said that the report had conducted an open inspection of 429 non-smoking areas and found people disregarding the non-smoking signs at 14 locations.
Areas that often see violations are the entrances to emergency rooms and near parking lots, Chen Ya-ping said, adding that it was possible the actions were to relieve stress due to health problems of friends or family members.
Real-estate agencies, convenience stores and streets outside cafes are also areas where people disregard non-smoking signs, Chen Ya-ping added.
Of the 72 universities the foundation inspected, more than 10 had cigarette butts on stairways, Chen Ya-ping said, but added that the discovery of cigarette butts did not mean that students were smoking.
The foundation’s private investigations of 6,120 locations found that 50 had not put up no-smoking signs near their main entrances, with those that fail to put up signs mostly being eateries or other places of public consumption, Chen Ya-ping said.
Lack of no-smoking signage at non-smoking areas is liable for a fine of NT$10,000 to NT$50,000 (US$333.47 to US$1,667.33), Chen Li-chuan said.
Smoking in non-smoking areas can result in violators being fined from NT$2,000 to NT$10,000, she added.
Since amendments to the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (菸害防治法) were passed in 2023, increasing the number of non-smoking areas nationwide to 33,000, local bureaus and departments of health had made 1.32 million inspections and found 6,601 violations for a total of NT$12.9 million in fines as of the end of last month, Chen Li-chuan said.
There were 2,477 stores or areas that failed to put up clear no-smoking signage, and those responsible were fined a total of NT$33.1 million, she said.
Health Promotion Administration Director-General Shen Ching-fen (沈靜芬) said that the agency would step up measures to prevent smoking and work with other government agencies to enforce the law.
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