By Chase L. Manson ’16
THE ROUNDUP

Drug store chain CVS recently announced it was pulling tobacco products from its shelves.

With CVS no longer selling cigarettes, one must wonder what has happened to the industry that once controlled the world.

The product seems to be irrelevant and no longer the cool thing to do.

The Centers for Disease Control  report that 18 percent of adults smoke in the United States.

These numbers have continued to drop and have been attributed to health awareness and state legislation.

However, the CDC also reports some frightening numbers:

While the numbers of smokers above 18 years of age are dropping, the number of smokers under 18 year old are rising.

The CDC reported in 2011 that everyday 2,100 people became addicted to cigarettes.

These numbers prompted CVS to stop selling tobacco products.

This is a very smart idea that received media backlash, as it deprives addicts of their substance.

However, instead of getting people addicted, CVS can help the addicts with supplying the materials to quit.

CVS does sell nicotine supplements, which they should push to customers who once came to buy cigarettes.

The CDC reports that about half of smokers have the intention to quit.

Due to CVS, these smokers may finally beat the addict.

The motivation is there, as CVS once supplied smokers with the cheapest cigarettes on the market.

Other drug stores still sell cheap cigarettes.

However, CVS has inspired Walgreens to consider stop selling cigarettes.

Economists think otherwise as Walgreens makes about $2 billion annually in profit from cigarettes.

Walgreens has responded to CVS by creating a free online program to quit.

This a good step in the right direction for smokers.

However, I do think that what CVS has done is much more beneficial for smokers in general.

The world is changing and CVS has responded to this.

Tobacco is no longer in vogue and the product that once started wars is winding down.