Ohio higher ed panel: Ban all tobacco on campuses

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Ohio higher education officials have voted unanimously to urge the state's public campuses to ban use of all tobacco products, both indoors and outdoors.

The Ohio Board of Regents' resolution approved Monday comes after a review showed such policies help both smokers and nonsmokers and cut costs for education institutions.

The recommendation will touch all campuses, including Ohio State, one of the nation's largest universities. It currently bans only indoor smoking.

The Ohio Department of Health has prepared tool kits for universities and colleges to help them implement tobacco-free policies, though the decision will ultimately be up to each institution's board of trustees.

Bans on the use, advertising and sales of tobacco are increasingly being enacted or considered nationwide, sometimes over the objections of student smokers, staff and faculty.