AMHERST — All stores licensed to sell tobacco in Amherst will continue to be allowed to offer oral nicotine pouches to customers, but none of these products will able to contain more than 6 milligrams of nicotine, even those for sale at the town’s lone adult-only tobacco shop.

In the final revision in the updated “Regulations Restricting the Sale of Tobacco and Vape Products,” the Board of Health Thursday voted unanimously against limiting the availability of oral nicotine pouches, instead prohibiting sales of oral nicotine pouches with stronger dosages.

“I don’t really want to hurt business in Amherst, and it is available, and so I don’t think it needs to be treated differently where it’s adult only,” said Board of Health member Jack Jemsek.

Jemsek added that restricting dosages might also mean people would use more pouches at a time to get their fix.

“I’m inclined not to restrict the sales, but to restrict the dose in the convenience stores and so on,” said Board of Health member Premila Nair.

Members observed Amherst has just one adult-only store, Lazy Lungz Smoke Shop on North Pleasant Street.

The board received feedback that oral nicotine pouches can be effective for some in their smoking cessation efforts.

Despite comments during the latest hearing, as well as meetings in February and March, pushing for adopting a so-called “nicotine-free generation” policy, Amherst officials didn’t add that to the revised regulations, but are considering holding hearings on the topic later this year.

Belchertown last year adopted the policy, which prohibits anyone who didn’t turn 21 by Jan. 1, 2025 from buying cigarettes and other tobacco products from any retailer in that town.

Ken Elstein, who serves on Belchertown’s Board of Health, is among those who have asked Amherst to consider the nicotine-free generation policy.

Amherst Health Director Kiko Malin said the new regulations, once signed, will go into effect on Aug. 1. This effective date gives stores time to sell any items that may not be in compliance on that date.

Cheryl Sbarra, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of Health Boards, said that Somerville has restricted the oral nicotine pouches to adult-only stores. Sbarra explained that low dosage is considered 2 to 4 milligrams of nicotine, and medium dosage is considered 6 to 8 milligrams.

Sbarra said pouches have become the second most popular nicotine product, after vapes, for youths to use. “We hear from schools that kids are using them more and more frequently, even in middle schools,” Sbarra said.

Part of the appeal is that students can use the product in the classroom, and don’t have to be discrete, whereas if they are smoking or vaping they might request to go to the bathrooms. Sbarra said that some college-age users have been known to fall asleep with the pouches remaining in their mouths.

Prior to adopting the revised regulations in March, the health board dropped a provision that would prohibit a tobacco retailer within 1,000 feet of another, with Health Director Kiko Malin informing the board that this is used for more urban communities, where tobacco shops are concentrated in low-income communities of color.

Many of the other amendments in the latest revisions don’t have a major impact on how tobacco sales are handled, including renaming the regulations to “Restricting the Sale of Tobacco and Vape Products,” and eliminating the requirement for tobacco sellers to take and pass the tobacco quiz.

Other changesto tobacco rules

Other changes to tobacco rules include: putting an explicit cap at 14, and reasons for revocation of permits; adopting a unified fining structure for all tobacco violations; requiring the Board of Health to hold a hearing if there are four violations within a three-year period; and eliminating the regulation prohibiting anyone under the age of 21 from selling tobacco products, though those under 21 are not allowed to work in adult-only tobacco retailers.

Amherst already has rules placing the cap on tobacco licenses, and won’t issue new licenses when existing ones expire,

In addition, the price of cigars now matches state regulations by increasing minimum price, moving that from $2.50 to $2.90 per cigar and for multipacks to go up from $5 to $5.80, and clarifies the definition for tobacco product flavor enhancers to include flavored rolling papers.

The latest changes in regulations follows ones adopted in 2019, moving menthol cigarettes to adult stores, which came prior to the state’s June 2020 ban on menthol cigarettes. In 2015, Amherst raised the age to buy tobacco to 21, which the state did three years later, and also banned flavored tobacco from package and convenience stores. In 2013, the town prohibited the sale of tobacco at pharmacies, banned blunt wraps, and set a policy to retire permits when they were not renewed.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.