Increasingly, public and affordable housing providers are adopting no-smoking policies for their properties. According to recent studies, smoking rates are most highly concentrated among populations who often live in affordable and public housing. While smoking rates among the general population in Oregon have dropped to 17% in 2007, rates are as high as 32% among people who earn less than $15,000 a year and 31% among citizens without health insurance¹.

Public and affordable housing providers can benefit from implementing a no-smoking policy (good for business) and offering resources that help residents and staff quit smoking (good for health).

The American Lung Association in Oregon (ALAO) and its community partners work closely with public and affordable housing providers to make the adoption of no-smoking policies as seamless as possible. ALAO provided technical assistance to the Housing Authority of Portland (HAP) throughout its transition to a no-smoking policy. As of Aug. 1, 2009, a no-smoking policy covers 37 HAP properties, including 1,993 public housing units. An additional 3,760 affordable housing HAP units are expected to go smokefree by August 2010.

Read a complete case study on ALAO’s work with the Housing Authority of Portland.

Download the Housing Authority of Portland’s No-Smoking Policy Toolkit (a complete set of forms for other public and affordable housing providers to use).

View Additional Public and Affordable Housing Resources

_{1. Tobacco Prevention and Education Program. Oregon Tobacco Facts & Laws. Portland, Oregon: Oregon Department of Human Services, Oregon Public Health Division, 2009.}