Should Smokers Be The First To Go?

I just read about a hospital system in Georgia that has decided it will not longer employ smokers.  They just made this policy change and gave all employees 90 days to stop smoking or they will be fired.  This development brings to questions of whether this is fair.  Can we descriminate against smokers?  From strictly a business standpoint I have to say yes we can.

Here are the facts about smoking.  People who smoke are sick more often, they are setting themselves up for greater risk of major health problems, they take more breaks than non-smokers, and smoking create a poorer working environment because smoke stinks.  All these factors affect a business.  Health problems create higher premiums and cause people to miss days of work this leads to increased employee costs across the board but also leads to lower productivity.  People who take more breaks are less productive this costs the company money.  And the smell of smoke on a smoker is repugnant to someone who does not smoke.  This creates a distraction and lower productivity from the people around the smoker.

All these factors affect an employers bottom line.  This makes me think that in a time where payrolls are being cut and jobs are short, as an employer, why wouldn't you keep the people that allow your business to make the most money and drop those that are more expensive?