With the Food and Drug Administration proposing a federal rule to ban the sale of menthol cigarettes across the country, policymakers should examine the consequences of similar legislation and whether the bans have achieved their public health goals. On June 1, 2020, Massachusetts became the first state in the United States to implement a comprehensive ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes.
The ban has served as a test for what other states and municipalities might expect if they enact similar prohibitions on flavored tobacco products. Although officials often promote tobacco control policies as ways to
