Centering racial justice for Black/African American and Indigenous American people in commercial tobacco product regulation

Impacts of Tax and Flavor Tobacco Policies on San Francisco Bay Area Tobacco Prices

California Proposition 56 increased the state tobacco tax by $2 per cigarette pack effective April 1, 2017. Between 2015-2020 San Francisco (SF) and some cities in Alameda County enacted local flavored tobacco sales restrictions. SF also increased its Cigarette Litter Abatement Fee, from $0.20/pack in 2015 to $1.00 in 2020. Compare the change in tobacco prices before (2015) and after (2019/20) the implementation of a $2 increase in tobacco excise tax and local flavored tobacco policies in SF and Alameda Counties. Descriptive study of the pre-to-post policy analysis design. We drew a proportional random sample of retailers (N=463) in SF and Alameda Counties, by city. Using multivariable, single- and multiple-level linear regressions, we compared inflation-adjusted average tobacco prices in 2015 vs. 2019/20 by county and by flavor policy, accounting for socio-demographics. Change in inflation-adjusted average tobacco prices in 2015 vs. 2019/20 by county and flavor policy, accounting for socio-demographics. Between 2015-2019/20, the increase in cigarette prices was higher than the $2 tax increase, and higher in SF than Alameda County (+$4.6 vs +$2.5). SF retailers stopped selling Newport menthol cigarettes and Blu brand menthol e-cigarettes in 2019/20. Adjusted average cigarette prices increased significantly more in SF and Alameda County cities with comprehensive or partial flavor policies versus cities without flavor policies (by $3.23 and $2.11). Local flavor policies affected menthol product availability and may have had positive spillover effects and indirectly increased pack prices.

Behavior change, health, and health disparities 2022: Innovations in tobacco control and regulatory science to decrease cigarette smoking

This Special Issue of Preventive Medicine (PM) is the 9th in a series on behavior change, health, and health disparities. This topic is critically important to improving population health. Unhealthy lifestyles including substance misuse, unhealthy food choices, physical inactivity, and non-adherence with medical regimens are important preventable causes of chronic disease and premature death. This year we focus on cigarette smoking, which continues to have devastating health impacts including more than 8 million annual premature deaths globally and 480,000 in the U.S. where most of the research reported in this Special Issue was conducted. While the introduction of new tobacco products into the marketplace like electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) demands attention, it is essential that we remain focused on the enormous challenges involved in eliminating cigarette smoking. This Special Issue examines innovations in tobacco control and regulatory science aimed towards reducing cigarette smoking. Discussion of new tobacco products is largely limited to their role in this overarching aim of reducing combusted cigarette use. We discuss important innovations in tobacco control (e.g., digital text-based interventions, ENDS-assisted cessation, financial incentives) and regulatory science (e.g., nicotine reduction in cigarettes, flavor bans). Throughout, attention is given to the important topic of disparities in terms of understanding the uneven adverse impacts of cigarette smoking and efforts to eliminate it, and the critical importance of researching vulnerable populations. Across these topics we have recruited contributions from accomplished investigators, clinicians, and policymakers to acquaint readers with recent advances while also noting knowledge gaps and unresolved challenges.