As CVS takes steps to enforce the game-changing decision to stop selling tobacco products, 28 U.S. Attorneys General have been increasing pressure on other major retailers to do the same.
"Pharmacies and drug stores, which increasingly market themselves as a source for community health care, send a mixed message by continuing to sell deadly tobacco products," New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said in a statement on Monday. "The fact that these stores profit from the sale of cigarettes and tobacco must take a backseat to the health of New Yorkers and customers across the country."
The companies targeted were Kroger Company, Rite Aid Corporation, Safeway Incorporated, Wal-Mart Stores Incorporated, and the Walgreen Company. CVS Caremark Corporation agreed last month to stop selling tobacco products, with all of its 7,600 stores due to be void of cigarettes and their ilk by October 1 this year. CVS is one of the largest drugstore franchises in the U.S., topped only by Walgreen.
The demand came in the form of a letter, which Kroger, Rite Aid, Walgreen, and Wal-Mart are currently taking into consideration. The odd one out, Safeway, has yet to make a formal comment on the letter.
Interestingly, while state after state has called the legal standing and availability of e-cigarettes into question, the letter submitted by the Attorneys General does not mention the electronic devices. Several state and municipal governments have placed restrictions on e-cigarettes usage of late, including Beverly Hills, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Boston, all of which have recently voted to ban use of the devices in public areas. The areas include enclosed and open-air spaces alike, including bars, restaurants, and clubs, as well as parks, town squares, and outdoor markets. While supporters of the devices claim that the lack of tar make them substantially less harmful, dissenters point to the presence of nicotine liquid that's yet to pass muster in the eyes of scientists. It's estimated that e-cigarette sales amounted to around $2 billion in the past year, attracting concern that the devices could be a gateway to cigarette smoking, particularly in the case of teenagers.
Overall, cigarette sales in the U.S. last year reached $91.5 billion, while 480,000 preventable deaths occurred as a result of the habit.
