You'll Need an ID to Buy Nail Polish Remover and It's All Meth's Fault

Sign of the times: Now you must be 18 years or older to buy nail polish remover.

As the New York Post reports, CVS is rolling out a new policy in New England locations, limiting the number of bottles of nail polish remover one can buy at a time and demanding that customers show ID in order to purchase the stuff.

The drugstore chain says the rule is an attempt to curb the making of illegal methamphetamine, and issued this statement, according to the station:

“Because acetone is an ingredient used in the illegal manufacture of methamphetamine, we recently implemented a policy that a valid ID must be presented to purchase acetone-containing products such as nail polish remover. Our policy also limits the sale of these products in conjunction with other methamphetamine precursors and is based on various regulations requiring retailers to record sales of acetone.”

Nora Crotty at Fashionista points out that you can still buy two bottles a day, which should be plenty (unless you’re making meth) and this rule is really just for acetone polish remover — there are plenty of versions that are non-acetone, and usually the label will state “acetone” or “non-acetone.” Your nail polish will still come off with non-acetone remover, and I don’t know about you, but I usually get non-acetone anyway, because acetone is so drying. It’s just weird to think of nail polish remover as a controlled substance. Where is the Breaking Bad manicurist storyline?