LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY)- Starting August 1, bars and entertainment venues in Lafayette will implement a new smoking ban.

Smoking will be prohibited in Lafayette bars, clubs, and gaming facilities.

Patrons of bars in Lafayette will still be allowed to smoke in outside patios areas but smoking inside the bar won’t be allowed.

On April 18, the Lafayette Parish Council decided in a 7-2 vote to extend its smoking ordinance to all clubs and bars, just like the ban that recently passed in New Orleans.

Manager for Region 4 of the Louisiana Campaign for Tobacco-Free Living, Rene Stansbury said, “People don’t realize that if you’re in secondhand smoke for 30 minutes you can suffer the same health effects as smoking a cigarette yourself. So when you’re looking at these bartenders and wait staff that are working in these environments on six and eight-hour shift, they can be a half a pack to a pack a day smoker without ever picking up a cigarette themselves.””

According to a poll by the Louisiana Campaign for Tabacco-Free Living, out of 500 registered voters in Lafayette Parish, 68 percent support the smoking ban.

Among those supporters is zydeco musician Geno Delafose who sees the ordinance as a plus for musicians like himself who play in smoked filled bars regularly.

Delafose said, “I can tell, anytime I play in a bar that they smoke the next morning I can tell in my voice and just the way my body feels. So I’m very happy that Lafayette is going smoke-free and it’s going to be great for all the musicians, all the patrons, all the workers, and stuff. It’s going to add some years to our lives and we so happy to have that.”

Lafayette is now the 11th city in Louisiana to extend its no-smoking ordinance. City officials say they hope people see this as an effort to improve overall health in the city.