Assessing Tobacco Retailer Compliance with Point of Sale Policies

Audience: Local and state tobacco control advocates interested in point of sale (POS) and the FDA Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. Key Points: This study conducted store audits on a random sample of over 300 tobacco retailers in three counties in North Carolina. Rates of violation with POS provisions of the Tobacco Control Act were relatively high (15%). The most violated FDA provisions were retailers selling “light” cigarettes and allowing self-service of tobacco products. Differences in violation rates were found by store type with significantly higher rates among pharmacies and tobacco stores in contrast with supermarkets. Additional analyses will examine violation rates by socioeconomic and racial/ethnic neighborhood composition. As a method to assess compliance with POS regulations, observational audits are a low cost alternative to purchase attempts, and are thus unlikely to be overestimates Educational Experience: Participants will learn about factors that influence compliance rates with POS provisions. We will share the audit tool, which we believe is the first publicly available one of its kind. Participants will discuss application of the method and findings to their own communities, and implications for future POS policies. Benefits: The current presentation benefits audience members by providing insights into retailer compliance with new POS regulations, disparities in compliance, how such compliance audits can be carried out, and the implications of findings for current enforcement and future policy needs to further reduce the violation rates seen in this study.