Smoking Banned in Public Housing Across U.S.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced this week that smoking will be banned in public housing. Local housing agencies will have 18 months to implement the ban, HealthDay reports.

The ban will apply to all living units, indoor common areas, administrative offices and outdoor areas within 25 feet of housing and administrative office buildings. More than 2 million people live in public housing, the article notes. More than 228,000 public housing units are already smoke free. The new rule will cover more than 940,000 units.

The new rule does not apply to e-cigarettes, according to a news release by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. The group notes that individual housing authorities are allowed to include e-cigarettes in their policies.