An August 29, 2007 piece by Jack Hunter cites ACSH's Dr. Whelan among critics of Surgeon General Carmona and others who exaggerate the benefits of smoking bans, deadly though smoking is:
Reason magazine editor Jacob Sullum writes, "Carmona is so intent on promoting smoking bans that he absurdly exaggerates the hazards of secondhand smoke. (Carmona's) insistence that there is 'no risk-free level' is an article of faith, not a scientific statement."
Or, as scientist Dr. Elizabeth Whelan, president of the American Council on Science and Health says, "The Surgeon General's Report on the health consequences of environmental tobacco smoke needs [its] own warning label: 'Contains mix of facts, speculation, and downright hyperbole'."