I am very
pleased that the CVS pharmacy chain will be ending tobacco sales at all its
stores later this year! Cigarettes and
other tobacco products are much more visible and available for purchase than is
necessary. It is important that we
encourage actions that particularly may help teen and pre-teen youth avoid
getting addicted to products like cigarettes and snuff. Where adults struggle the most to stop
smoking, nearly always they’ve become addicted while quite young.
Cigarettes
are “worse” than liquor as well as lottery tickets and many other products (like
donuts) commonly sold in part because they “kill directly” through their
usage. Alcohol, for example, may be
abused and contribute to the deaths of many, however when consumed in
moderation it generally won’t hurt most people. There is no “safe consumption level” of
tobacco products.
CVS, the
second largest U.S. pharmacy chain, is taking a major step in announcing its
termination of tobacco sales. CVS’s
joining Target in not selling tobacco products by itself won’t substantially
cut smoking in the U.S. It will,
however, introduce the issue of voluntary limitations upon tobacco sales.
Hopefully
other major corporations will follow CVS and help cut the availability of
cigarettes and other tobacco products in U.S. stores. Hopefully people will now talk more about
the importance of further cutting the consumption of tobacco products in the
U.S. Hopefully someday in the
not-so-distant future 10 year old kids won’t be stealing cigarettes, getting
given cigarettes and getting hooked while so young!
Thanks!
