A San Francisco Superior Court judge denied a last-gasp effort to stop a ban on cigarette sales in city pharmacies, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Sept. 30.

The ruling by Judge Peter Busch clears the way for the immediate removal of cigarettes from San Francisco pharmacies. The law does allow grocery stores and big-box stores that also have pharmacies to continue to sell cigarettes.

The Walgreens pharmacy chain had asked for an injunction to delay the law from taking effect. Daniel Kolkey, an attorney representing Walgreens, said that the law is "very ephemeral, it's very fleeting and it's very arbitrary," adding that "the city should not be in the business of favoring some stores over others."

Walgreens plans to appeal the ruling.

San Francisco is the first city in the U.S. to ban tobacco sales in pharmacies.

Meanwhile, tobacco company Philip Morris is challenging the ban in U.S. District Court, claiming that the law represents a violation of free-speech rights.