AKB wants to regulate e-cigarette use
Ako Bicol (AKB) Party-list Representatives Rodel Batocabe, Alfredo Garbin Jr., and Christopher Co on Friday, September 9, filed a bill seeking to regulate the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes).
An e-cigarette is a handheld electronic device that vaporizes a flavored liquid, which the user inhales.
Under House Bill No. 3330, manufacturers of vaporized nicotine products will be required to register their products with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) for quality control.
Should it be passed, the Vaporized Nicotine Product Regulation Act of 2016 will mandate the creation of a new product category with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to remove it from the ambit of the “health related devices” category.
Worried about the casual selling of e-cigarettes in malls and other shops without proper government regulation, Batocabe debunked the millennials’ belief that “vaping” is safer than conventional smoking.
“These products still carry risk with them, as the technology used may still be defective and the substance used still contains nicotine,” he said.
An online check by Green+ indicated that nicotine is a high addictive drug and exposure to this may also prime the brain to become addicted to other substances.
While Batocabe admitted that they “do not have any concrete proof or studies to conclusively say that e-cigarettes are neither hazardous or safe,” another online check said that researchers from the University of California have found out that ‘vaping’ is no safer than regular smoking as “e-cigarettes vapor damages DNA in ways that could lead to cancer.”
Aside from regulatory testing by the FDA and DTI, the bill will also mandate to include a warning that says, “this product may damage your health and is addictive,” on e-cigarette packagings.
The lawmaker, however, clarified that they do not want to put e-cigarettes in the same light as regular cigarettes.
“What we want here is regulation, since practically anyone can just buy an e-cigarette without knowing the potential hazards it may pose,” Batocabe said.
