No other city has had the proposal to ban selling tobacco products before, but San Francisco may be the first one. The mayor wants there to be ban from pharmacies selling cigarettes. The mayor thinks it gives off a bad image of selling products that are bad for your health in a pharmacy which promotes good health.
Bigger chains like Walgreens and Rite Aid think differently. They believe their stores are "one stop shop" to be able to buy what customers want. Theses stores, including small independent pharmacies, are especially worried about this proposal. They are concerned about the overall sales going down. Smokers who come and buy cigarettes also buy other products as well. Without the cigarettes, the smokers are more likely to go elsewhere to buy what they need.
Businesses argue that there are other unhealthy products sold in pharmacies like sugar-filled foods and alcohol. Dr. Mitch Katz, supporter of banning cigarettes, disagrees by saying there is no healthy portion of tobacco like there is with alcohol and sugary foods.
How would you react if there was a tobacco ban in pharmacies in Lawrence?
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