The price of e-cigarettes in Minneapolis will go up to $25
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The Minneapolis City Council voted unanimously Thursday to increase the price of e-cigarettes in the city to $25 and restrict new tobacco shops from opening close to schools.
Council member Katie Cashman said during the meeting that she hopes the changes will put e-cigarette policies in line with restrictions on other tobacco products in the city and prevent kids from taking up smoking. Ordinance co-sponsor Council member Aurin Chowdhury said it will limit the health impacts of smoking, which she said includes respiratory damage and mental health struggles.
“We’re taking a step here on the Minneapolis City Council to make it less accessible to young people, and we know that one of the best tools that we have is pricing, and that's why we're moving forward on this today,” Chowdhury said.
Passage of the ordinance follows a 2024 change by the city that raised the minimum price for a pack of cigarettes to $15 and restricted the ability of stores to offer samples and accept coupons.
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The 2023 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey found that almost 14 percent of students interviewed had used an e-cigarette in the previous 30 days. Emily Anderson, the director of policy for the Association for Non-smokers Minnesota, said the changes will help protect young people and communities in the city targeted by the tobacco industry.
“Young people are extremely price sensitive, and when something becomes unaffordable they’re much less likely to initiate it, get hooked and continue to use it into adulthood,” Anderson said. “We also know that price helps people quit, so for those people using tobacco products currently and waiting to quit, price is a pretty big motivator.”
St. Paul was one of the first cities in the country to initiate a minimum price per pack of cigarettes in 2021. Instituting a minimum price for tobacco rather than a tax allows tobacco store owners to take less of an economic hit.
A spokesperson for Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said he plans to sign the legislation. The price increase for e-cigarettes will go into effect as soon as the mayor signs the bill. The zoning changes will go into effect on Aug. 1.
