Tag: Malaysia

2023 WHO Report Wrongly Details Malaysia Policy

Media has reported that the recent World Health Organization (WHO) 2023 report on the global tobacco epidemic wrongly claims Malaysia doesn’t have or barely has smoking bans in public places. Malaysia is marked as having “zero” indoor places with a complete smoking ban. Malaysia has had smoke-free places since 2004.
The WHO Report on the global tobacco epidemic 2023 launched yesterday – which covered data until 2022 – categorised Malaysia as having a “complete absence of a smoking ban, or up to two public places completely smoke-free,” according to media reports.
Other smoking ban categories in the WHO report were three to five public places completely smoke-free, six to seven public places completely smoke-free, and all public places completely smoke-free (or at least 90 per cent of the population covered by complete subnational smoke-free legislation).
Malaysia’s level of compliance with smoking bans was categorized as “data not required or not applicable”.
Going into further detail on public places with complete smoking bans, Malaysia was marked as having “zero” indoor places with a complete smoking ban, as well as having seven outdoor places where smoking is banned either fully or partially.
The 2023 tobacco epidemic report by the United Nations health agency claimed that Malaysia does not have smoking bans in government facilities, indoor offices and workplaces, and pubs and bars.
On health care facilities, educational facilities except for universities, universities, restaurants, and public transport, the WHO report categorized Malaysia with “no” ban, but with an additional tag: “Smoking is banned and the law does not allow designated smoking rooms, except if the health authority allows them by administrative act. Until now, no such administrative act has been taken”.
Malaysia did not receive a single “yes” in the WHO report across all eight categories of public places on whether there is a complete smoking ban. Compliance levels with smoking bans in Malaysia for all these categories were marked as “data not required or not applicable”.
Other countries in the Western Pacific region, in which Malaysia was categorized, received “yes” in various different categories of public places on whether there are smoking bans.
The WHO report also stated that for Malaysia, smoking is not comprehensively banned in one or more jurisdictions.
In another table comparing countries on additional public places with complete smoking bans, again, the WHO report marked “no” for Malaysia in all categories except one — outdoor children playgrounds or parks — that got a “yes”.
The “no” for Malaysia with a tag — “Smoking is banned and the law does not allow designated smoking rooms, except if the health authority allows them by administrative act. Until now, no such administrative act has been taken” — was marked for these categories: land transport (train, taxi, bus, metro, tram); air transport (plane); water transport (boat, vessel, ferry); indoor waiting areas of public transport (train station, metro station etc.); airports; hotels; prisons; shops (supermarket, shop, shopping mall); and cultural facilities (museum, cinema, theatre, arena). Other countries, on the other hand, obtained a “yes” for various different categories.
On additional characteristics of smoking bans, the WHO report marked “yes” for Malaysia on the requirement to display non-smoking signs in smoke-free places; fines on the establishment for not asking a patron to stop smoking and for not posting no-smoking signs; fines on the patron for smoking; and a citizen complaints and investigations system.
Malaysia was marked “no” for required signs identify a telephone number or other mechanisms for the public to report violations; fines on the establishment for not removing ashtrays; and dedicated funds for enforcement. “No explicit ban on use” was marked for Malaysia for the categories of ban on the use of heated tobacco products (HTPs) and electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) or electronic non-nicotine delivery systems (ENNDS) in public places.
This table on additional characteristics of smoking bans appears to be mostly accurate for Malaysia, except for the ashtray component. Eateries in Malaysia are prohibited from providing ashtrays.
On “no explicit ban on use” of e-cigarettes in public places, although Malaysian health authorities do sometimes take action against people for vaping in no-smoking areas, this is not explicitly prohibited in the law, as the Control of Tobacco Product Regulations only covers cigarettes and conventional tobacco products.
Malaysia has had smoke-free places for nearly two decades since the enactment of the Control of Tobacco Product Regulations 2004 under the Food Act 1983. Section 11 of the 2004 regulation itself prohibits smoking in government premises, air-conditioned eateries, shopping complexes, hospitals or clinics, educational institutions or higher educational institutions, airports, and public vehicles or public transport terminals, among others. Designated smoke-free zones have been increased in Malaysia over the years in amendments to the 2004 regulation.
According to an update as of 2020 by Tobacco Control Laws – a website by U.S.-based International Legal Consortium, a team of lawyers who specialize in tobacco control – Malaysia is 100 percent smoke free in multiple indoor places, including public transport, government facilities, health care facilities, schools and universities, and restaurants, among others.
In 2019, then-Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad expanded the smoking ban from indoor restaurants to open-air eateries.
August 1, 2023
Malaysia MPs Want Liquid Nicotine Back on Poisons List

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Opposition MPs in Malaysia are amplifying calls for the reintroduction of liquid nicotine into the Poisons Act 1952.
Kuala Langat MP Ahmad Yunus Hairi, who heads Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) health portfolio, said the absence of regulations on vape has led to a proliferation in the number of teens using e-cigarettes or vaping products.
“By excluding liquid nicotine from the Poisons Act, we have inadvertently created loopholes that undermine our efforts to combat the use of vaping among our youth.
“I hope liquid nicotine can be reinstated into the Poisons Act, given the Health Minister’s authority over the matter, so that, at the very least, before we proceed with the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023, we can have some control over these e-cigarette devices,” Dr Ahmad Yunus said in his debate on the Health White Paper (HWP) tabled in Parliament, reports CodeBlue.
Both the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) and the Malaysian Pharmacists Society (MPS) have previously urged the government to bring liquid nicotine back under the control of the Poisons Act 1952, particularly in light of the uncertain status of the tobacco bill.
The Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill, which regulates tobacco and vape products, remains in limbo after it was referred to the Health parliamentary special select committee (PSSC) – chaired by former Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad – immediately after first reading at the Dewan Rakyat on Monday.
This means that vapes and e-cigarettes will remain legally available for sale to minors aged under 18 for at least another four months until the Lower House meets in October.
June 18, 2023
Malaysia Ready to Table New Tobacco Endgame Bill

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Malaysia’s Ministry of Health is ready to table the Control of Smoking Product for Public Health Bill, which includes the Generational Endgame (GEG) policy, reports the New Straits Times.
If enacted, the legislation would prohibit anyone born in 2007 or later from buying and using cigarettes or vaping products in Malaysia. A provision to ban possession of those products has been dropped from the bill on the recommendation of the Parliamentary Special Select Committee.
The bill also governs registration, advertising, promotion and sponsorship, packaging and sales of smoking products.
“Any violation, including selling of cigarettes to children in the GEG group will be an offence when the bill is passed,” said the health minister’s special adviser, Helmy Haja Mydin.
People in the targeted age group caught buying or using tobacco or vaper product risk fines of MYR500 and community service. The fines had been reduced from a previous proposal to avoid unduly burdening the GEG group.
According to Mydin, the order is meant to educate and show that the policy is not purely punitive.
After its enactment, the bill requires periodic reports to measure the legislation’s effectiveness in combating underage smoking.
May 23, 2023
Malaysia Urged to Restrict E-Juice to Sealed Bottles

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The Malaysian Substance Abuse Council (Masac) has recommended that only locally made vape liquids in sealed glass bottles be allowed for sale in the country, reports The Star. Using glass bottles will minimize the risk of undesirable substances being added, according to Masac’s secretary-general Raja Azizan Suhaimi.
A joint study by Masac, the Asian Center for Research on Drug Abuse and Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia found that teenage girls are increasingly using vape liquids laced with psilocybin, a psychoactive compound found in fungi such as “magic mushrooms.”
Raja Azizan suggested that the age limit for vaping should be raised from 18 to 21 to minimize the abuse of vape liquids, which may contain drugs. So far, only 10 manufacturers producing liquid nicotine are registered with the Customs Department, despite the registration deadline ending on April 30, 2023.
Masac also suspects that the three 13-year-old girls who were allegedly gang-raped by four teenagers in Kota Kinabalu on April 26, 2023, may have been given a vape liquid laced with psilocybin. The Malaysian government attempted to regulate the use of vapes among youth in October 2022 through the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill, but it was referred to a Special Parliamentary Select Committee for refinement.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim revealed during the revised Budget 2023 in February that vape liquids containing nicotine are still illegally sold in the country with estimated sales of MYR2 billion.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Zaliha Mustafa has stated that the Generational Endgame Bill—a piece of legislation that aims to gradually raise the smoking age until it covers the entire population—will be expedited and retabled.
May 8, 2023
April 30 Deadline for Malaysian Vape Manufacturers

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Following the removal of nicotine e-liquid or gel from the Poisons Act 1952 to allow for e-cigarettes and vaping products to be taxed in Malaysia, local manufacturers producing e-liquid or gel products containing nicotine must register their manufacturing activities with the Customs Department by April 30, according to the Ministry of Finance (MOF).
“Early registration within this prescribed period may prevent manufacturers from being charged a compound for the offense of late registration. This early registration will ensure comprehensive industry compliance and smooth tax collection by May 2023,” the MOF said in a statement on April 2, according to The Edge Markets.
This follows the imposition of an excise tax of 40 sen ($0.004) cents per milliliter on nicotine e-liquids or gels.
rime Minister and Finance Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced the government’s plan to impose an excise tax on liquid or gel products containing nicotine when he re-tabled Budget 2023 in February.
The previous government under Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s administration also proposed to extend tax collection from gel or liquid products containing nicotine for vapes and e-cigarettes in the tabling of Budget 2022 by imposing a tax of RM1.20 per ml. However, the plan was postponed, because nicotine vape liquid was still classified as a Class C poison under the Poisons Act.
The new excise duty, the MOF said, would enable the government to tax the vape industry which is estimated to be worth over RM2 billion ($454 million), and at the same time help discourage the use of vapes.
It will also help improve rules and control of excise duty goods by the customs to avoid leakage of national income, according to media reports.
April 3, 2023
Malaysia Removes Nicotine E-Liquids From Poisons List

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Malaysia’s government has removed e-liquid containing nicotine used in e-cigarettes and other vaping products from the country’s Poisons List of controlled substances. The move enables taxation on e-liquids.
Media reports claim the removal effectively legalizes e-cigarettes with nicotine without any regulations in place, as the current Control of Tobacco Products Regulations 2004 under the Food Act 1983 only cover conventional cigarettes and other tobacco products.
The Control of Tobacco Product and Smoking Bill 2022 – which seeks to regulate both tobacco and vape products, besides a ban on these products for anyone born from 2007 – has yet to be tabled in the current 15th Parliament, reports Code Blue.
Health Minister Zaliha Mustafa gazetted an order Friday to exempt nicotine “preparation of a kind used for smoking through electronic cigarette and electric vaporizing device, in the form of liquid or gel” from the Poisons List under the Poisons Act 1952 – overriding the Poisons Board that unanimously rejected the proposal last Wednesday.
The Excise Duties (Amendment) Order 2023 – which subjects e-liquid or gel containing nicotine to excise duty of 40 sen ($0.004) per milliliter – gazetted by Finance Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is also the prime minister, was dated last March 29, the same day as the Poisons Board meeting.
The tax on e-liquids with nicotine went into effect on April 1.
CodeBlue reported that the Poisons Board, an independent body formed under the Poisons Act, wholly objected to the government’s proposal to exclude nicotine-containing e-liquid from the Poisons List on the basis that the harm of allowing e-cigarettes to be sold to anyone, including children, outweighed the benefit of tax revenue from such products containing nicotine, a highly addictive substance.
April 2, 2023
Malaysia Vape Groups Wants OTC Nicotine E-Liquid

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The vape industry in Malaysia expressed support for a potential exemption of liquid nicotine from control under the Poisons Act 1952 in the government’s bid to tax e-cigarettes.
Associations representing vape and e-cigarette companies claimed that this would enable regulations to be introduced for the vape industry, according to CodeBlue.
“Continuing to subject vape products containing nicotine under the Poisons Act does not help as it is not a suitable framework and does not work for the products,” Adzwan Ab Manas, president of the Malaysia Retail Electronic Cigarette Association (MRECA), said in a statement.
Currently, nicotine – except tobacco that is regulated separately under the Control of Tobacco Product Regulations 2004 under the Food Act 1983 – is classified as a Group C poison under the Poisons Act that can only be dispensed by medical practitioners or pharmacists.
Dewan Perniagaan Vape Malaysia (DPVM) secretary-general Ridhwan Rosli, in a separate statement, claimed that if liquid nicotine is exempted from control under the Poisons Act, vape products can be regulated under “current legislation”.
However, the only current law regulating vape products is the control of liquid nicotine under the Poisons Act which the government may soon eliminate.
March 30, 2023
Malaysia Lawmakers Urged to Reassess ‘Endgame’ Bill

The Malaysian Society for Harm Reduction (MSHR) has called on the Malaysian government to reassess the generational endgame (GEG) measure regarding vaping, reports the New Straits Times.
Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh, MSHR chairman, stated that many smokers are using vaping to quit smoking cigarettes and that the GEG could be counterproductive as it positions vaping as equally harmful as smoking.
“While vaping has health risks, we cannot ignore scientific evidence that vaping is at least 95 percent less harmful than smoking,” said Puteh. “Several reputable public health organizations have made that estimate and endorsed by multiple developed countries. In addition, vape is also recognized as an effective tool to reduce smoking hazards and rates.”
The MSHR has suggested that vaping be regulated and training be provided to vendors on proper ways to switch to nicotine-replacement therapies and vapor products. It also suggests forming an independent committee driven by science and evidence to conduct in-depth research on vapor products.
“If we look at the decline in the smoking rates in countries with higher vaping rates, it speeds up as the vaping rate increase[s],” said Puteh.
“Legislative process for the new bill will take a lengthy time,” she said. “In addition, a bill should only be tabled with detailed discussion and studies on the proposed GEG measure that the previous minister proposed.
“Given this, we believe the government should take immediate steps to regulate vape products using existing laws to speed up regulations on the products to protect consumers from prohibited ingredients by introducing standards on the product as well as prohibiting access by minors.”
March 8, 2023
Malaysia PM Wants Rules for Nicotine E-Liquids

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The government of Malaysia wants to regulate and tax nicotine liquids, reports New Straits Times, citing Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Speaking during the presentation of the government’s 2023 buget, Anwar said that although vape with nicotine is illegal, the product is still being sold widely with an estimated market size of more than MYR2 billion. “Would it not be great if it is monitored and taxed to discourage the usage of vape,” asked Anwar, who is also the finance minister.
While welcoming the proposal to introduce a regulatory and taxation framework for e-cigarettes, industry groups insisted on consultations. “Regulations and tax rates need to be balanced given it will impact local industry players,” said The Malaysian Vape Chamber of Commerce.
In his presentation, Anwar also expressed support for the Generational Endgame (GEG) bill, which would make it illegal for people born after 2007 to buy tobacco products, including e-cigarettes.
The Advanced Centre for Addiction Treatment Advocacy (ACATA) said the government must conduct more studies on the GEG proposal before making any decision.
While ACATA is encouraged by the government is taking steps to regulate vape, the agency said prohibition was likely to backfire. “There is substantial and credible evidence to prove that vape products are less harmful than smoking cigarettes,” the organization stated. It also cited evidence showing that vaping is effective in helping smokers to quit smoking cigarettes without attracting many never-smokers. ACATA cited a 2020 study, which found that only 0.6 percent of Malaysian nonsmokers vape.
The Malaysian Vapers Alliance, meanwhile, expressed disappointment that the government supported the GEG proposal, saying that cigarettes and vapor products should be treated differently, given the vast difference in risk they present.
February 24, 2023
Malaysia Removes NRT, not Vape from Poisons List

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Malaysia’s Health Ministry has categorized nicotine-replacement products as nonpoisons to make them more accessible to consumers, reports The New Straits Times.
Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the move was done by granting an exemption to nicotine under the Poisons Act 1952 for products in the form of patches or gum registered under the Control of Drugs and Cosmetics Regulations 1984.
“This exception is expected to help smokers, who are motivated to quit smoking, in dealing with the withdrawal symptoms,” said Khairy.
At present, smokers who want to quit smoking have limited access to nicotine-replacement products as they are regulated under the Poisons Act 1952.
Under the law, nicotine is classified as a “Group C poison” and can be dispensed only by licensed pharmacists or registered medical practitioners.
The New Straits Times article made no mention of nicotine vapor products, which tobacco harm reduction advocates consider to be the most effect nicotine-replacement products on the market.
Malaysian lawmakers are currently considering the Control of Tobacco Product and Smoking Bill 2022, which, among other measures, would ban the sale of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone born after 2007.
October 7, 2022