NO SMOKING ~ The Signs of the Times

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CVS to Ditch All Tobacco Products

Alice Park @aliceparkny
Feb. 5, 2014
Updated: Feb. 5, 7:40 a.m.

CVS Quits Selling Tobacco 3 Weeks Ahead of Schedule


CVS Caremark announced Wednesday that it will remove cigarettes and all tobacco products from its 7,600 pharmacies nationwide by October 1 – costing the retailer an estimated $1.5 billion in annual revenue.

The move addresses what public health officials and pharmacists have long seen as a hypocritical practice: patients picking up medications to treat disease, not to mention smoking-cessation products, can also add a pack of cigarettes to their purchase. In recent years, the disconnect has become even more glaring, as retail pharmacies have increasingly shifted their role in the health-care community, investing in delivering medical services such as immunizations and other basic care through retail clinics, and targeting more wellness-oriented goals. Such health-care delivery, says Dr. Steven Schroeder, professor of medicine at the Smoking Cessation Leadership Center at the University of California San Francisco, “is in clear conflict with the commercial interests of pharmacy chains in selling tobacco products. I think the pressure has been building over the last five years as pharmacies have gotten more into the care-dispensing business.” Schroeder co-wrote an essay appearing the latest issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association with CVS Caremark’s chief medical officer, Dr. Troyen Brennan.

MORE:Thank You, Surgeon General: Tobacco Control Has Saved 8 Million Lives
http://healthland.time.com/2014/01/07/thank-you-surgeon-general-tobacco-control-has-saved-8-million-lives/

The American Medical Association (AMA) supported the decision, noting that reducing access to tobacco products is one part of a multi-pronged approach to lowering smoking rates in the U.S. In 2009, the Association urged pharmacies to stop selling tobacco products, a position echoed by the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, the American Lung Association, and the American Pharmacists Association.

President Obama issued a statement Wednesday morning praising the step, as well. “As one of the largest retailers and pharmacies in America, CVS Caremark sets a powerful example, and today’s decision will help advance my Administration’s efforts to reduce tobacco-related deaths, cancer, and heart disease, as well as bring down health care costs,” Obama said.

Other aspects of the anti-smoking effort include taxes on tobacco products and increased education and awareness about the dangers of smoking, a strategy that began 50 years ago with the first Surgeon General Report on Tobacco, which linked smoking to lung disease, including cancer. Tobacco and smoking causes nearly 500,000 deaths each year in the U.S., and costs $132 billion in medical expenses, according to the latest Surgeon General Report.

MORE: Surgeon General’s Report on Tobacco Has a New Target: E-Cigarettes
http://time.com/1248/surgeon-generals-report-on-tobacco-has-a-new-target-e-cigarettes/

Public health officials hope CVS’s decision will prompt other pharmacy chains to do the same, and build on the regulatory and cultural momentum that is marginalizing smoking. Wider bans on lighting up in public, hotels, planes, and office buildings has helped to drop smoking rates from 42% of U.S. adults in 1965 to 18% currently. Still, 42 million Americans light up, and by making cigarettes scarcer, it’s possible more smokers may consider kicking the habit. “If someone comes into CVS to buy a pack of cigarettes, and CVS isn’t selling them, they might think that it’s time to quit,” says Schroeder.

This article has been updated to include President Obama’s statement.

http://time.com/4464/cvs-to-ditch-all-tobacco-products/

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CVS Stops Selling Tobacco Products

September 03, 2014

Starting Wednesday, CVS Caremark plans to stop selling tobacco products at its stores. It's a move health care experts hope other major drugstore chains will follow.

Back in February, CVS announced it planned to stop offering those products in their stores by October 1st, making it the first national pharmacy chain to do so. CVS has 7,600 stores nationwide.

In a statement, the President of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Matthew Myers said: "CVS' announcement to stop selling tobacco products fully a month early sends a resounding message to the entire retail industry and to its customers that pharmacies should not be in the business of selling tobacco."

Going one step further, the company will also start a national smoking cessation program to help smokers quit.

CVS estimates it will lose around $2 billion dollars in annual revenue and will impact earnings in 2014 by about 19 cents a share.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says smoking tobacco causes more than 5 million deaths per year globally and this figure it set to jump to 8 million annually by 2030. The U.S. accounts for around 489,000 deaths, of which 49,000 are caused by second-hand smoke exposure.

The White House Press Secretary, Josh Earnest, released the following statement applauding the move:

"Today, CVS took a significant step in stopping the sale of tobacco products in their stores and kicking off a smoking-cessation campaign.

As one of our country's largest retailers and pharmacies, the newly-named CVS Health is setting a powerful example that we hope others in the industry will follow.

CVS's actions will not only help Americans across the country who are trying to quit smoking, it will also help ensure that when families go to their neighborhood pharmacy, they can get the information and support they need to live healthy lives, which can contribute to driving down health care costs.

The President has made creating a tobacco-free generation a top priority. These efforts include signing the landmark Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which gave the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authority over tobacco products; expanding tobacco cessation coverage and making new investments in prevention campaigns through the Affordable Care Act; and increasing the cost of cigarettes through a federal excise tax increase in the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act.

And 50 years after the Surgeon General's landmark Report on Smoking and Health, we have reduced smoking rates by half. However, our work is far from done, and today's announcement by CVS Health is an important step forward in improving the health and lives of millions of Americans."

http://insurancenewsnet.com/oarticle/2014/09/03/cvs-stops-selling-tobacco-products-a-551191.html#.VApI7hZuXGh