February 16, 2011 - More medical businesses and hospitals have started to adopt policies that require employees to be smoke-free. The rule essentially prohibits the hiring any person that smokes by requiring new employees to take urine tests or obey by an honor code. The strict policy stems from frustration due to softer policies that have not been powerful incentives to quit, like offering cessation programs and increasing health care premiums for smokers. Smokers on average cost an employer $3,391 more a year for health care and lost productivity, according to federal estimates.
However, many groups have expressed opposition to policies of this kind. Even some antismoking groups have voiced their concern, noting that these policies go too far and could be seen as discriminatory. The American Legacy Foundation, for instance, has stated that employers should be supportive of smokers who want to quit. Smokers are not the enemy and their employment should not be conditioned on whether or not they quit.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/11/us/11smoking.html?_r=2&emc=eta1