Canada a country of two solitudes when smoking rates among anglophones, francophones compared
Dr. Mark Taylor, the Winnipeg surgeon who heads Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, told November's National Conference on Tobacco or Health that data released by the Ontario College of Pharmacists show there was no change in the rate of pharmacy closures the year after the government banned tobacco sales in pharmacies. Ontario is the only province to make the move, and antitobacco advocates heralded its decision as a major victory in the campaign to limit access to tobacco products.
When the Ontario legislation was introduced pharmacists argued that a ban on cigarette sales infringed their rights under the federal Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Pharmacy chains led the opposition to the ban on sales but the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the decision of a lower court and dismissed the challenge.
Taylor said the college's new data proved that economic and legal challenges to the sales ban were unfounded.