According to a report by plo.vn on April 7, Vietnam currently lacks legal control measures for new tobacco products (including vapes). In a recent draft report submitted to the government, Vietnam’s Ministry of Health called for a ban on the production, operation, import and promotion of vapes, heated tobacco products and other new tobacco products.
The report, which summarizes the results of the implementation of the Tobacco Harm Prevention Law over the past 10 years, shows that the use rate of regular cigarettes among adult men has dropped by an average of 0.5% per year, from 47.4% in 2010 to 41.1% in 2021. The smoking rate among teenagers aged 13 to 17 has also been reduced by nearly half, from 5.36% in 2013 to 2.78% in 2019. At the same time, the proportion of passive smoking in homes, public places and workplaces has also been significantly reduced.
Although these results are encouraging, the use of new tobacco products (mainly vapes, heated tobacco products) is increasing, especially among young people. In 2019, 2.6% of teenagers aged 13 to 17 were using vapes. This number rose to 8.3% in the 2023 survey. Among adults, the vape use rate in 2023 was 3.6%, compared with only 0.2% in the 2015 survey.
In addition, Vietnam’s current legal management mechanism cannot prevent the use of new tobacco products. The “Law on the Prevention and Control of Harmful Effects of Tobacco” stipulates: “Cigarettes refer to processed cigarettes, cigars, tobacco, shredded tobacco or other forms of products produced with all or part of tobacco raw materials.” Therefore, no matter how processed, cigarettes are products made from tobacco and there are no regulations for accompanying accessories. This decree does not stipulate the new generation of tobacco products. Therefore, vapes and heated cigarettes do not belong to the tobacco products defined in the “Law on the Prevention and Control of Harmful Effects of Tobacco.”
The Ministry of Health said that due to the lack of clear concept of these products, there are currently different opinions among regulatory agencies, health protection organizations and enterprises. At the same time, managing these products also faces many difficulties.
At the same time, Vietnam currently does not have strong enough regulations or penalties to prevent new tobacco products. Therefore, Vietnam’s Ministry of Health plans to submit a draft resolution banning the production, operation, import and advertising of new tobacco products at a parliamentary meeting in October 2024. The bill will clearly explain the concepts of new tobacco products such as vapes and heated tobacco, add regulations prohibiting the production, sale, import and advertising of new tobacco products such as vapes, and stipulate the responsibilities of relevant agencies and organizations.
As an vape company that focuses on health and innovation, Guutuu vape supports the call of the Vietnamese Ministry of Health. They believe that comprehensive control of new tobacco products is critical to protecting public health. Guutuu vape will continue to pay attention to the legislative process in Vietnam and looks forward to seeing more complete regulations and measures implemented to ensure that products on the market meet health and safety standards.
Guutuu vape believes that through compliance and innovation, the vape industry can provide smokers with safer and healthier choices and help reduce the use of traditional tobacco products. They pledge to continue their efforts to advance the vape industry and provide consumers with high-quality products and information to promote public health and the success of anti-smoking efforts.
In summary, the draft report from Vietnam’s Ministry of Health raises concerns about the regulation of new tobacco products. Although use of traditional tobacco products has declined over the past decade, novel tobacco products, especially vapes, are growing in popularity among young people. Vietnam’s legal management mechanism is currently unable to effectively control the use of these products, so the Ministry of Health plans to submit a draft resolution in October 2024 to comprehensively control new tobacco products. Companies such as Guutuu vape support this initiative, are committed to providing high-quality, safe vape products, and actively follow Vietnam’s legislative process to promote public health and the success of anti-smoking efforts.
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