Restrictive policies and regulations, such as bans or excessive taxes on vaping products in many countries, block global efforts to reduce the harm caused by smoking, experts said in a global forum held in Warsaw, Poland to address the smoking problem.
In a panel discussion during the Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN) 2022, Federico N. Fernández, executive director of Argentina-based Somos Innovación, said vaping and other smoke-free alternatives are giving humanity the best chance to end the problem of smoking.
Experts, however, said regulations are more stringent on smoke-free products than combustible cigarettes which they are supposed to replace. In the Philippines, some groups continue to call for the ban of smoke-free alternatives, which are found by science to be less harmful than cigarettes.
Lindsey Stroud, director of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance’s Consumer Center and board member of the American Vaper Manufacturers Association, said regulators such as the US Food and Drug Administration should recognize harm reduction and regulate based on a continuum of risk, recognize differing devices, and hold manufacturers accountable.
Dennis Gutierrez – Inquirer.net – 2022-07-11
Want More Investigative Content?
