Brazil Considers Legalizing Vaping Products, Again
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The Brazilian Senate’s Economic Committee was set to vote on Tuesday on a bill that would legalize e-cigarettes in the country. Currently, e-cigarettes are prohibited in the country for manufacture, import, marketing, distribution, storage, transportation, and advertising.
The vote on the text has been repeatedly postponed due to a lack of consensus among legislators, according to media reports.
Although the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) banned them in Brazil in 2009, the products are still on the market and are sold illegally.
In a joint statement led by the Brazilian Medical Association (AMB) and the Brazilian Society of Pulmonology and Tisiology (SBPT), the medical entities unequivocally reiterate their stance against any changes to the regulation of electronic cigarettes, also known as vapes, “without any reservations.”
Ricardo Meirelles, coordinator of the AMB Anti-Smoking Commission, argues, “This project is a disservice to the Brazilian population because it intends to release a product that causes a lot of harm to health.”
In April, the board of directors for the Brazilian Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) voted unanimously on April 19 to maintain a ban on the sale of e-cigarettes and other vaping products.
