A state wide ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products, including Mint cigarettes, took effect Monday, foreign reports said.
When Governor Charlie Baker signed the bill last November, Massachusetts became the first state to approve such a ban.
The law applies to all seasoned tobacco products sold in retail stores and online in Massachusetts.
The new law specifically limits the sale of products to licensed smoking bars, such as cigar bars and hookah lounges, which are only allowed to be consumed on site. This restriction applies to peppermint cigarettes and flavored electronic cigarettes, cigars, pipe cigarettes, and chewing cigarettes.
Anti smoking groups praised the ban, saying flavored tobacco products attracted young people. They say Mint cigarettes are no different.
Convenience stores are those who are against the law.
Massachusetts’s decision to extend the ban to menthol flavors has been controversial, in part because research shows that minorities rarely consume menthol cigarettes, which some activists warn could lead to disproportionate police enforcement in the black community.
The law also imposes a 75% consumption tax on nicotine electronic atomization products, empowers public health officials to regulate new products, and requires health insurance companies to provide smoking cessation counseling services.
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