Characterizing and assessing compliance of online vendors to
the state of Massachusetts ENDS product sales ban

Nali, Matthew; Purushothaman, Vidya; Xu, Qing; Cuomo, Raphael E.; Mackey, Tim K.

doi:10.18332/tid/131199

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Nali et al [ 59 ] evaluated the compliance of online retailers with the Massachusetts restriction on flavoured ENDS by attempting to purchase flavoured ENDS from 50 online vendors. Of these sites, 80% used some form of age verification, and 76% were non-compliant with the statewide restriction.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The actual and anticipated effects of restrictions on flavoured electronic nicotine delivery systems: a scoping review

et al. 2022

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Objective To synthesize the outcomes of policy evaluations of flavoured electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) restrictions. Data sources PubMed, Scopus, Embase and Web of Science before May 3, 2022. Study selection Studies that report sales, behaviour, or compliance outcomes related to implemented or hypothetical ENDS flavour restrictions. Data extraction Restriction details, whether implemented or hypothetical, whether additional products were restricted, jurisdictional level, study locations, and outcomes classified by sales, behaviour, and compliance. Data synthesis We included 30 studies. Of those, 26 were conducted exclusively in the US, two in India, and two surveyed respondents in multiple countries, including the US. Twenty-one evaluated implemented restrictions, while nine considered hypothetical restrictions. Five studies evaluated product sales, 17 evaluated behaviour, and 10 evaluated compliance, with two studies reporting multiple outcomes. Two studies reported an increase and one a reduction in cigarette sales following restrictions, while three reported reductions in ENDS sales. Behavioural studies presented a mixed view of the impacts of regulations on ENDS and cigarette use. However, the use of disparate outcomes limits the comparability of studies. Studies of hypothetical restrictions suggest decreased ENDS use, increased cigarette use, and increased use of illicit markets. Studies of compliance with flavoured product restrictions that included ENDS found that 6–39% of stores sold restricted flavoured products post-restrictions. Online stores remain a potential source of restricted products. Conclusion Our findings highlight the need for additional research on the impacts of ENDS restrictions. Research should further evaluate the impact of restrictions on youth and adult use of nicotine and tobacco products in addition to the effects of restrictions in countries beyond the US to enable a robust consideration of the harm-benefit trade-off of restrictions.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These findings are consistent with research examining retailers’ compliance with other flavoured tobacco restrictions [ 26 , 66 ]. Compliance studies also suggest additional challenges of regulating the online market, as observed in Massachusetts and India [ 59 – 61 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The actual and anticipated effects of restrictions on flavoured electronic nicotine delivery systems: a scoping review

et al. 2022

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“… 35 More recently, several reviews of flavoured e-cigarette bans have reported similar availability of flavoured products among multiple venues and online retailers in San Francisco 36 and Massachusetts. 37 Conflicting data also suggest high compliance by some vendors in San Francisco. 38 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite enforcement in 2010, non-cigarette products with explicit and ambiguous descriptors were recognised to be widely available in stores many years after the ban’s implementation 35. More recently, several reviews of flavoured e-cigarette bans have reported similar availability of flavoured products among multiple venues and online retailers in San Francisco36 and Massachusetts 37. Conflicting data also suggest high compliance by some vendors in San Francisco 38…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in product labelling practices and the use of flavouring chemical additives in vaping products after enactment of statewide flavour legislation

et al. 2022

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IntroductionOn 18 May 2020, New York State enacted legislation banning the sale of vaping products with distinguishable flavours (other than tobacco). According to this new statute, vaping products are deemed flavoured if they include a statement, whether expressed or implied, that have distinguishable tastes or aromas other than tobacco. This study aimed to determine how manufacturers responded.MethodsWe collected 555 vaping products from daily vapers (238 preban and 317 postban). We compared preban and postban labelling of products for expressed and implied flavour descriptions, graphics and colours. Flavouring chemicals and concentrations were identified using chromatography methods and were compared preban and postban.ResultsAnalysis of the labels preban and postban did not reveal a change in products with expressed flavoured descriptors (45.8% vs 44.2%) and a minimal decrease in implied descriptors (22.3% vs 14.5%). An increase in products without any descriptors was observed (28.2% vs 37.2%) notably within products from a popular pod brand. The average concentration of eight popular flavourings identified preban was 1.4±2.7 compared with 2.3±3.5 mg/mL (p<0.001) postban. No significant changes between individual flavouring concentrations in the most popular refill solutions and pods were found.ConclusionWhile a majority of products appeared to remain non-compliant, this study suggests that enactment of legislation on vaping products making expressed or implied flavour claims may result in some manufacturer changes to product labelling including removal of flavour descriptors. However, use of flavouring additives in vaping products appeared not to be impacted by the ban.

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“…24,25 Several studies have also focused on a measuring the potential impact of a ban in a single retail location or examining the economic and product sales impact on retailers statewide. 26,27 Tobacco control policies that restrict a product's availability are expected to impact sales and revenue due to lowered availability of restricted product primarily at point-of-sale. However, potential unevenness in consequent store closures may unintentionally worsen existing tobacco-related health disparities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Impact of the Massachusetts Temporary Flavor Ban on Licensed Tobacco Retailers

Nali,

Purushothaman,

et al. 2023

Tob Use Insights

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Introduction In 2019, the state of Massachusetts signed into law the first statewide sales restrictions of flavored ENDS/tobacco products for both physical and online shops in response to a previous executive order to curb E-Cigarette, or Vaping Product, Use Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) cases that were surging throughout the nation. Methodology This study obtained licensure data from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, to observe the changes in retail licensure comparing the pre ban (October 2018-August 2019) and post ban periods (October 2020- August 2021). A series of linear regression tests were conducted on both periods using census tract data to explore potential associations with sociodemographic covariates, including median age, median household income, and population proportion by gender, age, and race/ethnicity groups. Results Analysis of the Massachusetts post-ban period (October 2020-August 2021) found that new tobacco retail licenses issued decreased by 52.9% (n = 968) when compared to the pre-ban period (October 2018-August 2019) of 1831. A significant positive association was discovered between change in new retailer count and proportion male population (2.48 ± 1.05, P = .018) as well as proportion Hispanic population (1.19 ± .25, P < .001) at the census tract level. Conclusion/Discussion Our analysis indicates that, following the temporary MA flavor sales ban, the total number of licenses decreased, though decreases were more pronounced for new licenses when compared to continuing licenses. Higher increases in new tobacco retailer density were significantly associated with concentration of male and Hispanic populations.

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Characterizing and assessing compliance of online vendors to the state of Massachusetts ENDS product sales ban

Cited by 7 publications

References 17 publications

The actual and anticipated effects of restrictions on flavoured electronic nicotine delivery systems: a scoping review

The actual and anticipated effects of restrictions on flavoured electronic nicotine delivery systems: a scoping review

Changes in product labelling practices and the use of flavouring chemical additives in vaping products after enactment of statewide flavour legislation

Assessing the Impact of the Massachusetts Temporary Flavor Ban on Licensed Tobacco Retailers

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