February 2022 News and Research Roundup

Welcome to CounterTobacco.org’s “News and Research Roundup!” Each month we post a summary of the latest research, reports, and news stories on counteracting tobacco product sales and marketing at the point of sale (POS). Keeping up with what’s happening in the POS movement all across the country can help you choose policies and strategies that work best for your community. New research can help provide support for your work and evidence for the importance of the “War in the Store.” Have a story you don’t want us to miss? E-mail it to us!

New Research

Point-of-Sale Pricing Policies

Tobacco Couponing: A Systematic review of Exposures and Effects on Tobacco Initiation and Cessation, Nicotine & Tobacco Research
- This systematic review found that across studies, people were more likely to receive and redeem coupons for tobacco products if they had lower levels of educational attainment, were LGBTQ+, or use tobacco frequently. People who were younger, women, and non-BIPOC were also more likely to redeem coupons. The studies also show how the tobacco industry targets people who are have low socioeconomic status, are BIPOC, and women with coupons. Across studies, receiving coupons for tobacco was associated with a greater likelihood of initiation and people who received or redeemed coupons for tobacco were also less likely to successfully quit.
- Learn more about policies to prohibit coupon redemption and other point-of-sale pricing policies.

Policy Evaluation

Evaluating the Impact of Strong and Weak California Flavored Tobacco Sales Restriction Policies on the Tobacco Retail Environment, American Journal of Health Promotion
- This study showed that between 2013 and 2019, communities with strong policies restricting the sale of flavored tobacco products saw a 41.9% decline in the percent of stores that sold any flavored tobacco, a 52.5% decrease in the percent of stores that sold menthol cigarettes, and a 26.8% decline in the percent of stores that sold non-cigarette flavored tobacco. However, communities with weak flavor policies actually saw a slight increase in stores that sold any flavored tobacco products and a 39.6% increase in the percent of stores that sold non-cigarette flavored tobacco. Communities with no flavor policy also saw an increase in the percentage of stores that sold flavored tobacco. Stores in both communities with strong and weak flavored tobacco policies were less likely to sell menthol cigarettes than communities with no flavor policy, and stores in communities with strong flavor policies were also less likely to sell non-cigarette flavored tobacco products and any flavored tobacco products. Nearly all of the strong flavor policies included graduated fines for retailer violations of the policy and more of the strong flavor policies than the weak flavor policies also prohibited the sale of menthol cigarettes.
Evaluation of Statewide Restrictions on Flavored E-Cigarette Sales in the US From 2014-2020, JAMA Network
- E-cigarette sales data from 4 states that imposed sales restrictions on the sale of flavored e-cigarettes and 35 states that did impose sales restrictions shows that the restrictions were associated with a decrease in total e-cigarettes sales, meaning that not all people who were using flavored e-cigarettes switched to tobacco flavor when the restrictions were imposed, but instead likely quit using e-cigarettes.
- Learn more about e-cigarettes at the point of sale.
Differential impact of the Canadian point-of-sale tobacco display bans on quit attempts and smoking cessation outcomes by sex, income and education: longitudinal findings from the ITC Canada Study, Tobacco Control
- An analysis of data from the International Tobacco Control Canada Survey found that point-of-sale display bans across the country’s provinces were associated with increased smoking cessation after being in place for at least 24 months. The display bans were also associated with more quit attempts among women than men.
Tobacco 21’s Impact Amid the E-Cigarette Surge, Public Health Reports
- An analysis of tobacco product use among first-year undergraduate students in Columbus, OH between 2016 and 2018 found that while the city began enforcing a minimum legal sales age of 21 for all tobacco products in 2017, the law did not curb e-cigarette use, though it did reduce combustible and smokeless tobacco use among students. Researchers suggest that additional youth-access regulations are needed.
- Learn more about how licensing can help enforce Tobacco 21 laws.

Retailer Density

Spatial clustering of hookah lounges, vape shops and all tobacco retailers near colleges, Nicotine & Tobacco Research
- This study found that nearly all community colleges and 4-year colleges in California were within 3 miles of at least one licensed tobacco retailer. The study also showed that tobacco retailers cluster around college campuses but with variation by retailer type, with hookah lounges clustering closer to 4-year college campuses than to community college campuses and vape shops clustering near community colleges but not near 4-year colleges.
- Learn more about stores near schools.
Spatial analysis of tobacco outlet density on secondhand smoke exposure and asthma health among children in Baltimore City, Tobacco Control
- This study found that in Baltimore, MD, the more tobacco outlets that were located near a child’s home, the more secondhand smoke they were exposed to, and the more secondhand smoke they were exposed to, the less controlled the child’s asthma.
- Learn more about ways to limit tobacco retailer density.