Smokers to be lectured

Smokers will be forced to listen to a three-minute anti-smoking speech at community hospitals, the Legal Mirror reported Monday.

The campaign, which will not come into full effect for five years, will see doctors asking patients for their smoking history. They will talk to non-smokers for one minute about the harm of smoking, while smokers will get the full three minutes.

Smokers will also be referred to larger hospitals for treatment, according to the regulation issued by Beijing health authorities.

Currently, some community hospitals in Chaoyang district are trialling the anti-smoking campaign.