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Bloomberg Aims to Conceal Tobacco Sets

NEW YORK — New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg announced a bill Monday that would require tobacco products be kept out of sight in retail stores, with the goal of reducing youth smoking rates.

If passed, retailers would be required to keep tobacco products in drawers, cabinets, under the counter, behind a curtain or in any concealed location except when being sold to a customer or during restocking. The bill doesn’t impact advertising for sellers.

“New York City has dramatically lowered our smoking rate, but even one new smoker is one too many — especially when it’s a young person,” said Bloomberg in a statement.

If passed, the Tobacco Product Display Restriction would make New York City the first in the nation to keep tobacco products concealed.

More news: Bloomberg to Appeal Blocked Soda Ban

A handful of supermarkets in New York state have voluntarily obstructed the view of cigarettes in stores.

Select Hannaford Supermarkets and Price Chopper stores have added double-thick opaque filters and otherwise muted tobacco sets so as not to entice so-called “replacement smokers,” at the urging of Project Action Tobacco-Free Coalition, which educates community members and local leaders in the New York counties of Hamilton, Fulton and Montgomery, about the benefits of concealing tobacco advertising.

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