Online Sales Bans Risk Backfiring: Haypp Group Calls for Greater Access to Safer Nicotine Alternatives
American smokers who are searching for safer alternatives to cigarettes face a critical challenge: limited access, restrictive policies, and a regulatory environment that often puts barriers in their path rather than support. According to Dr. Marina Murphy, Senior Director of Scientific Affairs at Haypp Group, the United States risks losing ground in the global push toward smoke-free living if it continues down the path of limiting access to reduced-risk nicotine products.
Dr. Murphy laid out her position in an editorial titled Why We Need Greater, Not Less, Access to Reduced-Risk Nicotine Products, where she warns that proposals to ban online sales of nicotine products could cause more harm than good. Instead of advancing public health, she argues, such bans would reduce consumer choice, entrench the illicit market, and inadvertently drive smokers back to combustible cigarettes—the very products that remain the deadliest form of nicotine consumption.
A Market Already Starved for Choice
The U.S. nicotine product landscape is already constrained. According to a 2024 report from the CDC Foundation, only about 13% of nicotine products on the American market are currently authorized for sale. That leaves consumers with a narrow set of options at a time when smokers need more diverse and accessible alternatives to combustible tobacco.
In such a restricted environment, further limitations—such as prohibiting online sales—would only intensify the problem. Dr. Murphy emphasizes that instead of guiding smokers toward smoke-free products, barriers like these risk locking them into traditional smoking habits. “You don’t make progress by locking the shop door — especially when most of the shelves are already empty,” she noted. “If smokers can’t find reduced-risk products easily, they’ll just keep buying cigarettes.”
Online Access as a Lifeline for Adults
One of the central concerns with an online sales ban is the impact it would have on adult smokers in underserved or rural areas. For many of these individuals, online platforms provide the only reliable way to access reduced-risk products such as nicotine pouches, e-cigarettes, or other smoke-free alternatives.
Restricting online access disproportionately harms vulnerable groups, including those with fewer local retail options, lower socioeconomic backgrounds, or physical limitations that make in-store purchasing difficult. By shutting down online avenues, policymakers risk excluding the very populations that most need access to alternatives.
Dr. Murphy explains that policymakers must recognize how adults realistically access nicotine products in today’s world. “You can’t just ignore the realities of how adults access these products in the real world,” she said. “Blocking online sales doesn’t solve the problem—it simply locks out adults who rely on online access.”
The Double Standard in Regulation
Proponents of online bans often argue that such measures are necessary to prevent youth access to nicotine products. While protecting youth is an important goal, Dr. Murphy points out that this reasoning does not align with the way other age-restricted goods are regulated.
In many states, alcohol can be legally purchased online and delivered to consumers, as long as robust age-verification measures are in place. Yet, some of these same states are considering or implementing bans on online sales of nicotine alternatives. This inconsistency suggests a regulatory double standard.
The issue, Dr. Murphy argues, is not the availability of online sales but rather the failure to consistently enforce existing age restrictions. Modern technology already offers tools to strengthen compliance, including digital identity verification, real-time database checks, and secure delivery processes. Instead of banning online sales altogether, regulators could adopt these tools to better protect youth while preserving adult access.
The Risk of Protecting Cigarettes Instead of Public Health
Perhaps the most alarming consequence of an online sales ban is its potential to drive smokers back to cigarettes. If safer alternatives become harder to access, the default option remains the most harmful one: combustible tobacco.
Dr. Murphy is clear on this point: “Restricting adults’ access to adult products doesn’t protect public health and doesn’t protect youth — it protects cigarettes.” By reducing consumer choice, regulators inadvertently shield the cigarette market, prolonging nicotine consumption in its most dangerous form.
This outcome runs counter to global public health goals. Many countries are adopting strategies that encourage smokers to switch to less harmful products as part of their smoke-free roadmaps. The United Kingdom, for instance, has actively promoted vaping and nicotine pouches as part of its tobacco harm reduction policies, leading to measurable declines in smoking rates.
In contrast, the U.S. risks stalling progress by overemphasizing restrictions instead of enabling innovation and access.
Innovation Paired With Smart Regulation
Dr. Murphy and Haypp Group believe that the smarter path forward lies in a balanced approach: encouraging innovation in reduced-risk products while implementing strong, enforceable regulations that ensure safety and youth protection.
Instead of banning online sales, the U.S. could strengthen compliance frameworks to ensure that only adults can access these products. Enhanced age-verification technologies, secure payment systems, and responsible marketing practices are all tools that can minimize risks without restricting choice for adult consumers.
“Innovation, paired with smart regulation, offers the most realistic pathway to achieving smoke-free goals,” Dr. Murphy said. “We must protect youth, but not at the expense of adults who are seeking safer alternatives. Progress means providing options, not removing them.”
The Role of Haypp Group
Haypp Group is among the global leaders in advancing tobacco harm reduction. As the parent company of Northerner.com and Nicokick.com, the group has made it its mission to provide adult consumers with better access to reduced-risk nicotine alternatives. By expanding product availability and advocating for evidence-based regulation, Haypp Group aims to support smokers in their transition away from combustible tobacco.
Through its platforms, Haypp has seen firsthand how online access plays a vital role in helping smokers find and adopt safer products. Cutting off this access would, in the company’s view, undo much of the progress that has been made in moving smokers toward less harmful options.
