New York marks the 10th anniversary of its landmark indoor smoking ban this week with advocates saying thousands of lives were saved while even opponents say most of their concerns were blown away.
The ban changed the lives of New Yorkers who had been allowed to smoke — or forced to inhale others' secondhand smoke — in almost every public place including stores and on buses and trains.
The American Cancer Society says thousands of lives were saved as smokers were prompted to quit and as waiters and other workers were no longer subjected to hours of secondhand smoke each day.
Even restaurants and bars quickly recovered after an early loss in business.
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