Contact:

Maria Pereira Villa, B.A.

Health Educator Consultant

Office of Community Health

Florida Department of Health in Orange County

Phone: (407) 723-5244

@GOHealthyOrange

Orlando, Fla. – The Florida Department of Health’s Tobacco Free Florida program would like to recognize TransPremier, LLC, an asphalt logistics company based in Orlando, for having a written tobacco free policy at their worksite. This local employer has also hosted The Great American Smoke Out to encourage smokers to quit tobacco for a day and provided educational support with Tobacco Free Florida’s “QUIT YOUR WAY” resources at their end of the year employee event.  Tobacco Free Florida offers a variety of resources to help your business limit costs while creating a supportive workplace environment that encourages your employees to quit tobacco.

Many businesses are discovering that addressing something as simple as tobacco use in the workplace can have a profound effect on profitability. "The health and safety of our team members and the public is TransPremier's priority and partnering with programs such as Tobacco Free Florida has given our staff free resources to improve their health. Becoming a Tobacco Free Grounds employer has lowered our company's health insurance costs, increased our productivity and most importantly improved our work zone safety by minimizing distractions and on-site smoking breaks," explains Sergio Guarnizo, CEO and Founder of TransPremier, LLC.

Despite the growing trend of smokefree policies and the substantial decrease of smokers in the state, many of Florida’s most vulnerable are still involuntarily affected by secondhand smoke, which has hundreds of toxic chemicals including about 70 that are known to cause cancer. ¹ Secondhand smoke greatly increases the risk of lung cancer, which is Florida’s number-one cancer killer. ² Each year, primarily due to secondhand smoke exposure, an estimated 7,300 non-smoking Americans die of lung cancer.

“We are pleased to know TransPremier has taken the steps to implement a tobacco free workplace policy,” said Dr. Raul Pino, Director of the Florida Department of Health in Orange County. “This policy will benefit employees by reducing tobacco use and preventing tobacco-related diseases. The Florida Department of Health in Orange County is committed to partnering with companies to prevent citizens from using tobacco products.”

Tobacco has killed more than 20 million people prematurely since the first Surgeon General’s report in 1964 and still today, smoking remains the leading preventable cause of disease and death in the U.S. ⁴ Floridians who want to quit any form of tobacco have access to Tobacco Free Florida’s FREE and proven-effective resources. Visit tobaccofreeflorida.com/quityourway to learn more.

                                                            
About the Florida Department of Health

The department, nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, works
to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated
state, county and community efforts.
Follow us on Twitter at @HealthyFla and on Facebook. For more information about the
Florida Department of Health please visit www.FloridaHealth.gov.

About Tobacco Free Florida

The department’s Tobacco Free Florida campaign is a statewide cessation and
prevention campaign funded by Florida’s tobacco settlement fund. Since 2007, more
than 234,000 Floridians have successfully quit, using one of Tobacco Free Florida's free tools and services. To learn more about Tobacco Free Florida’s Quit Your Way
services, visit www.tobaccofreeflorida.com or follow the campaign on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/TobaccoFreeFlorida or on Twitter at
www.twitter.com/tobaccofreefla.