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NY cracks down on smoking, bans tobacco sales by pharmacies

It's raising minimum price of a pack of cigarettes by 24% and capping number of sellers, among other new laws

Published Tue, Aug 29, 2017 · 09:50 PM

New York

NEW York boosted the minimum price of a pack of cigarettes by 24 per cent to US$13 and placed a cap on the number of tobacco sellers, part of the city's biggest crackdown on smoking in more than a decade.

The anti-tobacco moves came in the form of a seven-point package of laws that mayor Bill de Blasio signed on Monday. The measures create a retail licence fee for sellers of electronic cigarettes and almost double the licensing fee for tobacco retailers to US$200.

The city is also requiring all apartment buildings of three or more units to create explicit smoking policies, while banning smoking in all common areas. Pharmacies will be prohibited from selling tobacco as their licences begin to expire in 2018. The move will affect drug stores like W…

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