Cigar news you can use: A city for rich people makes a bold statement which impacts working class people.
Keep smoking
Beverly Hills Officially Becomes 1st U.S. City to Ban Tobacco Sales — Except in Hotels, 3 Cigar Lounges
Marc Dominguez, bartender at Buena Vista Cigar Club, smokes a cigar in the Beverly Hills lounge on May 21, 2019. (Credit: Kyle Grillot / AFP / Getty Images)
Beverly Hills has become the first U.S. city to end most tobacco sales.
The City Council on Tuesday unanimously voted to snuff out sales of cigarettes, cigars, e-cigarettes and other tobacco products beginning in 2021.
The ban covers sales at gas stations, pharmacies, convenience and grocery stores. However, it exempts hotels and three plush cigar lounges in the wealthy and glamorous Los Angeles suburb.
The hotel exemption was designed to accommodate tourists, who could have a concierge deliver their smokes — although they’d have to smoke them outside.
Gas station owners opposed the measure, saying it unfairly targeted their businesses and might force employee layoffs.
Public health advocates argued that the cost is higher in terms of health.