Chicagotalks » Jean-Virgile Tassé-Themens

New Law in Illinois Would Remove Cigarettes from Drug Stores

Jean-Virgile Tassé-Themens — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 05:01:45 +0000

Cigarettes could disappear from Illinois drug stores under a new bill proposed before the state legislature.

State Rep. Marlow H. Colvin, (D-Chicago) introduced a bill last month that would prohibit the sale of tobacco products in hospitals, clinics and pharmacies. If passed, the bill would take effect in 2011. Offenders would face a fine of up to $1,000 on their third offense.

In the bill, Colvin said the sale of tobacco products is incompatible with the mission of health care institutions because it is detrimental to public health and undermines efforts to educate patients on the safe and effective use of medication.

State Rep. Harry Osterman (D-Chicago) and Constance A. Howard (D-Chicago) are also involved in the bill.

Janet Williams, an anti-tobacco activist and member of Illinois Coalition Against Tobacco, a coalition of health associations such as the American Lung Association of Illinois, supports the bill.

“This is a long battle, and I know that the tobacco lobbies will continue to fight against it,” she said. “If it doesn’t work this time, we will keep introducing in each following session until a majority of members accept it.” She noted that the bill was first proposed two years ago by the Illinois State Medical Society.

Williams said it is only a matter of time before the change is made.

“It is an ongoing process to have a mixed range of a good piece of legislation. During the past two years, we forced stores to have a license to sell cigarettes,” she recalled.

But the National Association of Convenience Stores has a different perspective. Jeff Lenard, the association’s vice president of communication, said he understands the concerns of anti-tobacco activists, but believes the greater issue at stake here is freedom.

“Even though this legislation could have a positive benefit for our members, we can’t applaud it because everyone should be allowed to sell any legal product,” he said. “If states start to ban cigarettes and tobacco products from pharmacies, who knows what will be next? Do the convenience stores also face the same legislation?”

Lenard said instead, pharmacies could place cigarettes under their counters where they would not be visible to customers.

“They could move impulse items or items that people are stealing,” Lenard said.

Robert Karr, executive vice president of the Illinois Retail Merchant Association, is also opposed to the bill. Like Lenard, he said people should be allowed to buy and sell tobacco products.

Karr compared tobacco with other products like soda and sugar, which have also drawn criticism for their effects on human health. “People can buy them anywhere, and it should be the same thing for cigarettes,” he said.

While their stores would not be affected by the bill, some tobacco store owners are also opposed to the bill. Gerard Levy, owner of Iwan Ries & Co. in the Loop, agreed that there should be no restrictions on selling tobacco in stores.

CVS and Walgreens, the two biggest pharmacy chains in Illinois, did not return requests for comment.

Only Massachusetts and San Francisco have laws that prohibit the sale of tobacco products in pharmacies.

Calorie Counts Could Appear on Fast-Food Menus

Jean-Virgile Tassé-Themens — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:41:16 +0000

Eating a Big Mac, a Whopper or a juicy Potbelly sandwich could come with a reminder for consumers in Illinois.

State Rep. Deb Mell (D-Chicago) introduced a bill last month that would force chains such as McDonald’s, Burger King, Subway and Potbelly to disclose on their menu boards the number of calories contained in each meal.

“I found my idea from last summer when I took a short trip to New York City. I saw that restaurants have to disclose information,” said Mell.

Mell, a first-term lawmaker and daughter of longtime Chicago Ald. Richard Mell (33rd), said she found the information useful because she was counting calories using an application on her iPhone.

“I am amazed how [many restaurants in Illinois] we have, and we don’t know what the ingredients are [in each entree]. Sure, there are nutritional fact sheets, but nobody will pay attention when ordering,” she said.

Mell said the new measure would not cost a lot of money because chains already calculate the calories, and they would only have to pay for reprinting the menus.

Jeff Cronin, communications director for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a national advocacy group for healthier eating, applauded the new bill.

“Labeling on menu boards really helps to control consumers’ weight and health,” Cronin said.

Cronin said his group has been working with New York City officials since that city’s legislation was enforced in 2008. Since that time, there has been a big impact on public perceptions.

According to an online survey reported by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, after consumers learned the calorie count of menu items, 71 percent of the people said they wanted to order lower-calorie options. Also, 51 percent said they would no longer order certain items.

The survey was conducted in early 2009, nearly a year after the law had taken effect, among 755 consumers who live in the five New York City boroughs.

“A new law could be a powerful tool to provide information, but we don’t know if consumers would change their habits,” said Dawn Jackson Blatner, a registered dietician and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.

Blatner said focusing on fast-food restaurants is a good start because two out of every three people in the county are overweight and fast-food restaurants offer food that is high in calories.

Some would like to extend the idea of posting calories counts to more restaurants.

Denise Wilson, a communications officer for Burger King, said the fast-food chain is fully compliant with current local regulations to post calories on restaurant menu boards.

However, Wilson said the company supports the Labeling Education and Nutrition Act (LEAN Act) introduced last year in the U.S. Congress because it would create a standard for the industry in all 50 states.

Besides Illinois, a dozen other states have introduced labeling laws, but only four have signed them into law. California will be the first one to enforce its law in January 2011. Maine, New Jersey and Oregon will follow suit a short time later.

“Currently, there is a growing patchwork of inconsistent state and local laws governing menu labeling. We will roll out consistent nutritional in-restaurant menu labeling once a federal standard is enacted,” said Wilson.

The National Restaurant Association also said the industry needs a national approach.

“Unfortunately, the current legislation is not the right approach for consumers to get the right information,” said spokeswoman Sue Hensley.

She said the association wants to develop a label that could be similar to the nutrition facts that can be found on food packages.

Medicinal Marijuana Bill Finds Support in Illinois

Jean-Virgile Tassé-Themens — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 06:01:02 +0000

Lisa has smoked marijuana since 1998 to relieve pain from osteoporosis and two knee replacement surgeries. The suburban mother of two grown children knows that smoking pot is illegal in Illinois, but she says the benefits are worth the risk.

“I have a terrible medical history, and smoking cannabis for medical purpose improved my lifestyle by 80 percent,” said the 54-year-old, who did not want to be fully identified for fear of being arrested.

Lisa’s situation could change soon if the Illinois General Assembly passes a measure that would allow for the medical use of marijuana, joining a dozen other states with similar law already on the books.

The bill, called the Compassionate Use of Medical Marijuana Pilot Program Act, is sponsored by Sen. William Haine (D-Alton).

The Illinois Senate approved the measure last spring with a close 30-28 vote, and it cleared the House Rules Committee at the end of January. The bill is now on the calendar for a final debate before voting.

Gov. Pat Quinn said earlier this year that he supports the use of medical marijuana.

Under Senate Bill 1381, Illinoisans would be allowed to have six cannabis plants, no more than three of which can be mature, during a 60-day period. The original bill set a limit of seven plants.

It would also establish a patient registry to control cannabis distribution. Patients or caregivers who distribute marijuana to someone who is not allowed to use it for medical purposes could face a $2,000 fine and up to two years in prison.

With the new law, Lisa said she would live in peace of mind and have a better control about the pot she purchases.

“Right now, I have to be really careful because I do not know the quality or where the product I am inhaling came from,” said Lisa. “With the new law, I could make sure to get an organic product and not chemical.”

The Illinois Family Institute, a group that promotes the protection of traditional family values, argues that cannabis should not be legalized for any medical reason.

“We believe that kids and teenagers could think that cannabis is like a pill for relaxing, and Illinois would have a higher rate of young users,” said Kathy Valente, director of operations of the group. She said she based her statement on a study from the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse.

Valente said THC, a substance in marijuana, is already present in many medications, and people should use those instead of an illegal drug.

The Illinois State Medical Society also opposes the bill.

“We are against the use of cannabis for medical purposes because there is no scientific evidence that it could be good for patients,” said the society’s president-elect, Steven Malkin.

Malkin said there are many anecdotes about the use of marijuana, but smoking and inhaling any substance is not healthy and not the right way to administer treatment.

Dan Linn, executive director of the Illinois Cannabis Patients Association, disagrees.

“The patients and the doctors should decide what is best, and the law should not be influenced by other people,” he said.

Linn said he worked with Sen. Haine to write the bill.

“We made a lot of concessions, and we are now confident that the bill will be adopted,” Linn said. “We are still contacting state lawmakers to make sure they understand the bill, but we should have the 60 votes needed.”

Linn said one major change was that the proposed bill is a pilot project, meaning that lawmakers would have to enact a permanent law in a couple years.