The Hill reports CDC data released Thursday show an estimated 58 million nonsmokers in the US are “exposed to secondhand smoke from others’ burning tobacco products,” a figure indicating that “progress in reducing the public’s exposure to secondhand smoke has stalled in recent years, despite major declines in past decades.” The CDC blamed a slow adoption of smoke-free legislation at both state and local levels for not limiting smoke in restaurants, bars, and workplaces. A statement by CDC Director Robert Redfield said, “These findings reveal that there is still much more to do to protect everyone – especially children – from this completely preventable health hazard.”

HealthDay reports CDC Deputy Director for Research Translation Brian King said, “The good news is that secondhand smoke is down since we started measuring it in the late 1980s. The bad news is that we still have marked disparities across population groups, and we haven’t seen any change since 2011.”

In an analysis of health risks from secondhand smoke exposure, ABC News reports the CDC data show the implementation of laws designating smoke-free areas is to blame for the recent years of slowing progress in reducing the numbers of Americans exposed to tobacco smoke.

From the news release of the American Association for Justice.