Tag: Duterte

  • Vape Bill Still Sits on Philippine President Duterte’s Desk

    Vape Bill Still Sits on Philippine President Duterte’s Desk

    Rodrigo Duterte – Credit: PCOO

    On Jan. 25 this year, the Philippine Senate ratified the report of the bicameral conference committee, which reconciled the disagreeing provisions of Senate Bill No. 2239 and House Bill No. 9007 which became the Vaporized Nicotine Products Regulation Act. The bill was then sent to President Rodrigo Duterte to sign the bill into law.

    Nearly 90 days later, the vaping bill is still unsigned by the president.

    Last year, the Senate approved Senate Bill No 2239, while the House of Representatives approved its counterpart version House Bill No 9007—both of which seek to regulate the importation, manufacture, sale, packaging, distribution, use, and advertisement of vaporized nicotine and non-nicotine products.

    “This bill is meant to regulate vaporized nicotine products, non-nicotine products, and novel tobacco products. It is expected to encourage a shift from smoking the unhealthier cigarettes to these alternative less harmful products,” Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto explained to the Inquirer.net.

    While the public waits for Duterte’s decision, groups on both sides of the camp on the proposed law have been urging the President to push for the bill or veto the bill, citing the advantages and disadvantages of the use of vape products.

    In January 2020, Duterte signed Republic Act 11467—or the Sin Tax Reform Act of 2020—which seeks to increase excise on alcohol products, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) or vapor products, and heated tobacco products (HTPs).

    Under RA 11467, such products are regulated by the country’s Food and Drug Administration.

    The measure, which is expected to be fully implemented this May, also prohibits the sale, purchase, and use of e-cigarettes or vapor products and HTPs to any person aged 21 years old and below and to non-smokers.

    It likewise limits flavors of e-cigarettes or vapor products to only plain tobacco or plain menthol.

  • Duterte Continues to be Urged to Veto New Vape Bill

    Duterte Continues to be Urged to Veto New Vape Bill

    New regulations for the vaping industry continue to sit on President Rodrigo Duterte’s desk in the Philippines. Again last week, the country’s Department of Education (DoE) urged Duterte to veto the Vaporized Nicotine Products Regulation Act approved by the Senate on third and final reading last December 2021.

    “As a government institution championing young Filipinos’ well-being, we are taking a stand against the so-called ‘anti-health’ vape bill, which will weaken existing law and the executive order against electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) or electronic non-nicotine delivery systems (ENNDS) commonly known as e-cigarettes or ‘vapes,’” according to a DoE statement.

    Credit: Craitza

    If passed into law, the proposed legislation will lower the access restriction age from 21 to 18 years old. The bill also permits online sales, and allows flavors other than plain tobacco and menthol, the only two flavors currently allowed by law.

    The bill also prohibits celebrities or social media influencers from endorsing vapor products. Physical and online retailers or distributors must register with the Department of Trade and Industry and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

    To underscore the danger it poses to the youth, the DoE stated that for school year 2020-2021, at least 870,000 learners in the basic education sector were 18 years old, while close to 1.1 million learners in senior high school were 18 to 20 years old.

    “This is the number of learners who will become legally allowed to be marketed the harmful products once the bill becomes law,” the DoE stated, adding that young people are vulnerable to engage in risky behaviors such as substance abuse.

  • Philippine Vaping Bill Heads to President Duterte’s Desk

    Philippine Vaping Bill Heads to President Duterte’s Desk

    Photo: Oleksii

    The Philippine House of Representatives and Senate have ratified a vaping bill that critics describe as too industry friendly. The legislation will now be forwarded to President Rodrigo Duterte for his signature.

    Among other provisions, the bill transfers regulatory powers from the Food and Drug Administration to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and lowers the legal purchase and consumption age for vapor products from 21 to 18. The DTI is also in charge of setting technical standards for the safety, consistency, and quality of these smoking alternatives.

    Philippine College of Physicians (COP) President Maricar Blanco-Limpin said he was particularly concerned about the lower vaping age. “We have been telling all the legislators that making these more available at a younger age is making these e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products more available to all including the non-smokers,” she told CNN Philippines.

    Limpin said vape products could lead to health concerns and the “mandate to protect the health of the country falls under the FDA, not the DTI.”

    If the President signs the measure, Blanco-Limpin said the COP would consider all actions, including bringing the issue to the Supreme Court.

     

  • Philippine Sin Tax Coalition Urges Duterte to Veto Vape Bill

    Philippine Sin Tax Coalition Urges Duterte to Veto Vape Bill

    A group of 60 civil society organizations calling themselves the Sin Tax Coalition in the Philippines have called on President Rodrigo Duterte to veto an “anti-youth” and “anti-health” legislation legalizing the sale of electronic vaporizers and heated tobacco products.

    Credit: Craitza

    The measure, which merges Senate Bill 2239 and House Bill 9007, would lower the age limit of access to e-cigarettes and vapes from 21 years old to 18, transfer regulatory jurisdiction from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and allow multiple flavors to vape products, according to the Manilla Times.

    The coalition said that the bill “contradicts the supposed intention of protecting the Filipino youth from addiction [to cigarettes].” Citing a 2019 Global Youth Tobacco Survey that showed that one in seven Filipino students aged 13-15 are electronic cigarette users, the expansion of access to these devices will endanger young Filipinos, thus stricter regulation is needed to prevent the epidemic of vaping-related lung injuries in the country, according to the group.

    The group called on Duterte to fulfill his campaign promise and leave a legacy of protecting public health by vetoing the bill, noting that he issued an executive order banning the manufacture, distribution, sale and marketing of unregistered e-cigarette products and expanding the smoking ban in enclosed public areas. “Passing this bill is an utter disservice to the health, welfare and well-being of your constituents. It is anti-youth, anti-health, and pro-addiction,” the group stated.

     

  • Study: 9 of 10 Filipinos Support Proposed Vape Bill

    Study: 9 of 10 Filipinos Support Proposed Vape Bill

    A consumer study shows that 9 out of 10 smokers in the Philippines support the enactment of the proposed vaping bill. The study’s respondants believe that the government should enact policies to encourage adult smokers to switch to less harmful alternatives to cigarettes while also ensuring these products are not used by minors.

    Credit: Carsten Reisinger

    The Senate and House of Representatives approved in 2021 their respective versions of the measure, according to the Manila Times. The House of Representatives on May 25, 2021 approved its own version of the measure — House Bill (HB) 9007 or the “Non-Combustible Nicotine Delivery Systems Regulation Act.”

    SB 2239 and HB 9007 will be reconciled by a bicameral conference committee and ratified by the two chambers when sessions resume after the holidays. The reconciled bill will then be submitted to the President for his approval and signature. If Duterte signs the bill into law, the Vaporized Nicotine Products Bill will regulate e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products (HTPs) and other vaporized nicotine products while ensuring that they contribute to government revenues.

    The study was conducted by Acorn Marketing and Research Consultants and commissioned by consumer advocacy group Vapers PH in August 2021. Acorn is the largest independent Asian research network with offices in 11 Asian countries including the Philippines. The survey had a sample size of 2,000 legal-age smokers. Results of the survey showed that 90 percent of the respondents believe that the government should come up with new ways to reduce the harm caused by smoking cigarettes.

    Intended to help adult smokers quit cigarettes, the bill has strong measures intended to protect minors from accessing and consuming the device.

  • Filipino Vapors Appeal to Duterte to Sign Vape Bill

    Filipino Vapors Appeal to Duterte to Sign Vape Bill

    Several consumer and harm reduction advocacy groups claiming to represent 16 million Filipino smokers and 1 million vapers, praised the country’s Congress for the passage of the Vaporized Nicotine Products Bill, and appealed to President Rodrigo Duterte to sign the bill into law.

    Credit: Rawpixel

    Vapers PH, Vaper Ako, Smoke Free Conversation PH, Nicotine Consumers Union of the Philippines, Philippine E-cigarette Industry Association, Quit For Good, Heated Equipment as Alternative to Traditional Smoking Philippines, PROVAPE, Philippine Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates Inc. and Consumer Choice Philippines, stated in a letter to the Duterte that, “with the growing positive scientific evidence coupled with our life-changing experiences, our resolve is stronger that vaping saves lives.”

    “We earnestly hope you would consider our humble plea Mr. President and sign the Vape Bill into law,” the groups wrote, according to the Manilla Standard.

    The Vape Bill bans the sale to and use by minors of vape products, and the sale, advertising and promotion of vape products within 100 meters of school perimeter and playground. Use of flavor descriptors that unduly appeal to minors in vape products and the display of vape products immediately next to products of particular interest to minors are prohibited. Persons who violate the provisions will be penalized with a fine or imprisonment.

    Congress is expected to hold a bicameral conference committee this month to unify the Senate and the House of Representatives’ versions of the bill. The version approved by the committee will be sent to the president for his approval and signature.