Strict Smoking Ban Put in Place in Mexico

As of January 15, 2023, Mexico has put up a strict law that prohibits citizens and tourists from smoking or vaping in public. If caught smoking anything from cigarettes to e-cigarettes in public, it could in a fine of $50- $300, making this law one of the strictest anti-smoking bans in the world.

Previously this ban was only in effect in places like bars, workplaces, restaurants, and most commonly, schools. Now this updated ban is in effect in places like Puerto Vallarta beaches, parks, sidewalks, and generally anywhere that children gather and just anywhere where you are near anyone.

Keely Herring-Waite said in an interview, "I don’t think they understand that this may ruin their economy. Mexico is one of the biggest providers of tobacco and banning it can majorly cause the economy to fall in ways that they don’t understand.” Max Loggains added to this by saying, “It could be a good thing for some like kids sure, but as Keely said it could destroy their economy faster than ever because the selling of tobacco would not be sold and then exported to others. I would like to see how long it lasts.”

Since this ban could either be a good or bad thing for some people and as Keely and Max said, many businesses are not taking this ban as a good thing. Since this ban has been set in place, it has affected many businesses. For example, some companies say they’ll sue because many of their customers that were being brought in were smokers and since the ban has been put into place they have lost those regular customers for the time being. So this ban could either take a wrong turn or turn out to be good