Health advocates are calling on South Korea to regulate e-cigarettes as tobacco products, reports the Maeil Business Newspaper.
The current law does not classify vapes as cigarettes, which means they are exempt from many of the regulations that apply to tobacco products. For example, vaping companies do not have to print graphic health warnings on their products or charge their customers tobacco consumption tax.
Article 2 of the Tobacco Business Act defines “cigarettes” as products suitable for smoking, sucking, inhaling, chewing or smelling.
The calls for expanding the legal definition follow concern about the growth of unmanned e-cigarette stores in Seoul, which are said to have inadequate age-verification procedures.
A survey by the Seoul metropolitan government revealed that the number of unmanned e-cigarette stores has quadrupled since April.
According to data from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, three out of 10 youth smokers started smoking e-cigarettes from 2019 to 2023. Six out of 10 teenagers who started with e-cigarettes are currently smoking regular cigarettes, the center said.
Bills to regulate e-cigarettes were tabled in the 20th and 21st National Assembly but failed to cross the plenary session threshold in each instance.