SAN FRANCISCO - Two years ago, San Francisco banned the sale of tobacco in drugstores, the first city in the nation to prohibit tobacco sales from stores like Walgreens and CVS. Now, the city is considering expanding the ban to include grocery stores with on-site pharmacies, the San Francisco Examiner reports.
The effort continues an aggressive citywide effort to curb smoking, including expanding it's no-smoking areas, reducing the number of tobacco-selling permits has been considered, and adding a 20 cents litter fee onto every pack of cigarettes.
"Cigarettes and chewing tobacco are a tiny fraction of the products sold, and pharmacies should be selling medicine and helpful items, not items like cigarettes that kill you," said Supervisor Eric Mar, who introduced legislation Tuesday that broadens the tobacco ban. "It sends the strong message that we are a city that promotes healthy living and stores should sell products with some accountability to the public."
The proposed legislation requires approval by the city's Board of Supervisors to become law.