Walgreens is fighting for the right to continue selling tobacco products in San Francisco by suing the city over a ban slated to go into effect next month, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Sept. 9.

Walgreens' attorneys are seeking an emergency injunction to prevent the ban from going into effect Oct. 1.

City health officials contend that people getting their prescriptions filled shouldn't have to deal with cancer-causing products sitting nearby. The ban affects stand-alone pharmacies like Walgreens and Rite Aid but does not extend to grocery stores or big-box retailers like Wal-Mart that house pharmacies on their premises.

"Our position is based solely on being fair across different types of retailers," said Tiffani Bruce, a Walgreens spokesperson, who said the ban would simply compel smokers to buy their cigarettes elsewhere.

Bruce said that Walgreens pharmacists are trained to counsel smokers on smoking cessation products. "This ordinance will discourage smokers from coming to a place where they can have this type of access," she said.

This summer, San Francisco became the first city in the nation to approve a ban on pharmacy sales of tobacco products. Boston followed suit last week, when city health officials gave preliminary approval to ban cigarette sales in pharmacies, college campuses, cigar bars and hotels.

Health officials in both cities say that the link between tobacco and its cancer-causing properties outweighs any health benefits to selling tobacco products in pharmacies.

"It's one thing to say you're doing it for the convenience of your customers, but to actually sue? To say this is your right to sell the substance associated with the No. 1 cause of preventable death?" said Mitch Katz, director of the San Francisco Department of Public Health. "It's unbelievable to me."

A hearing in the case is scheduled for Sept. 30.