According to the centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) smoking or exposure to second hand smoke causes 443,000 premature deaths and costs the nation $193 billion in health bills and lost productivity. The CDC also reports a decrease in the number of smokers – 19.3% of US adults smoked last year compared to 42.4% in 1965. Having said this, about 20% of Americans still smoke and smoking remains the leading cause of preventable deaths. Today, 55% of workers get their insurance through their employers and insurance costs have more than doubled in just a decade. Health care costs for tobacco users are $3,000 to $4,000 more each year than for non – smoker. As a result, more and more employers are making workers who smoke, or are overweight, or have high cholesterol pay higher premiums.