A draft revision released today (January 13) to Vietnam’s Law on Prevention and Control of Tobacco Harms signals a tougher regulatory stance on cigarettes and next-generation products, with measures aimed at strengthening public-health protections and limiting industry and special-interest influence. The proposal would require health warnings to cover at least 85% of cigarette packaging and expand smoking-cessation and detoxification provisions to include e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, reflecting reported rising nicotine dependence from alternative products. The amended law is scheduled to take effect January 1, 2027, providing a transition period for regulators, local governments, and consumers, and marks a shift toward more proactive risk control—particularly for youth—by tightening definitions, advertising rules, retail practices, and cessation requirements across the tobacco and NGP categories.
Tag: health
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Georgia Wants Declining Smoking Rate Down Quicker
Georgia’s National Center for Disease Control and Public Health presented new findings from studies conducted under the Global Tobacco Surveillance System, finding 25.4% of adults and 14% of young people in the country use tobacco products. Despite the gradual decline in overall consumption, Health Minister Mikheil Sarjveladze said reducing tobacco use remains a key public health priority and stressed the importance of evidence-based policymaking in shaping effective tobacco control measures. While welcoming the downward trend, the NCDC noted that stronger action is still needed to further reduce tobacco use.
The nationwide surveys, carried out between 2023 and 2025, have already informed Georgia’s National Tobacco Control Strategy for 2026–2030.
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Senegal Plans to Raise Tobacco Taxes
Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko announced plans to raise taxes on tobacco products, a move praised by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids as a major victory for public health. The government says the increase will both reduce smoking rates and generate additional domestic revenue, helping cut the budget deficit and fund health investments. The administration reports that tobacco costs the economy more than 40 billion CFA francs (about $70 million) in healthcare and lost productivity annually.
Sources around the endeavor suggest the tax rate would be between 70% and 100% of the retail cost.
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Study: Chinese Going Online to Bypass Flavor Ban
More than 90% of stores selling e-cigarettes in two major Chinese cities provided WeChat accounts or QR codes for quick delivery services, allowing consumers to bypass a nationwide ban on online sales that took effect in May 2022, a new study has found. Research conducted by the Health Communication Institute of Fudan University in Shanghai, compared e-cigarette stores in Shanghai and Chengdu, Sichuan province, before and after the implementation of the regulations.
In the first observation period in 2021, about 25% of stores offered a WeChat account and 17% provided a QR code for delivery services. These figures jumped to 90% and 91%, respectively, in the second observation period (December 2023 to March 2024), indicating a significant shift of customers from in-person to online purchases.
The regulations explicitly prohibit the sale of flavored e-cigarettes other than tobacco flavor and the sale of e-cigarette products to minors. They also ban the use of vending machines for such products and require warning labels on packaging. However, the study revealed that one-third of the surveyed stores continued to sell flavored e-cigarette cartridges, and only 83% had implemented age restrictions on sales.
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Taiwan Close to Deciding on Heated Tobacco Products
Two years in the making, Taiwan’s Health Promotion Agency (HPA) Director-General Wu Chao-chun said on Friday, that decisions to approve heated tobacco products could begin coming out as soon as next month.
Eleven tobacco manufacturers submitted applications to the HPA and six completed the documentation assessment phase of the approval evaluation process. Those companies moved into the product testing phase of the evaluation, which takes six months.
In March 2023, the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act was amended to allow a path to legalization on a case-by-case basis. Manufacturers that gain approval would be authorized to commercialize their products with the appropriate labeling and health warnings. Those that do not are forced to resubmit and begin the process again or move to litigation.
Wu said announcements of the results would be staggered as the documentation came in at different times and often had to be redone.