Congressman Barbers is Chairman of the House Committee on Dangerous Drugs / Vice-Chairman of the House Committee on Natural Resources
Congress passed this law with the harm reduction in mind for all our adult smokers who would like to switch from smoking.
One that will give them access to vapor products and heated tobacco products that have passed strict product standards, and will also prevent minors from buying or trying to buy these products
The law recognises a category of products that provide nictone without combustion.
These are considered consumer products and not as health products, thereby introducing a harm reduction approach, stating that reducing the harm caused by smoking as one of the purposes of its creation.
The law also bans the retail of nicotine shots and vapor products with a nicotine content above 65 milligrams per millilitre.
This gives our consumers the confidence to use these products without fear of harm.
Most people do not check the labels on the products they consume, whether its for vapor products or simpy even food.
A law primarily focused on its advocacy of harm reduction by convincing more smokers to switch to vaping.
To advocate harm reduction, it would be ignorant of us to not protect the consumers and may unintentionally cause even more harm to them.
More than half of the sections of the law deal with the restrictions that seek to prevent youth access.
This product is harmful and contains nicotine, which is a highly addictive substance, it is not recommended for use by non-smokers.
We allow all flavours but flavoured descriptors that are proven to be unduly appealing to minors are prohibited.
These shall not be targeted at or particulary appeal to minors and shall not feature a minor in or a celebrity or contain an endorsment implied or expressed by a celebrity.
The goal of this section of the law is to have an area where vaping is allowed without giving our non-smokers the impression to join them.
By having a specific area distance from our smoking areas, no smoke residue will be left on our consumers, creating a cleaner environment, these conditions may convince several smokers to switch to vaping.
This law was made as a harm reduction strategy to reduce the number of smokers in the country and sway them to switch to less harmful products.
It is not our goal to have nonsmokers most especially under the age of Filipinos be convinced and persuaded to suddenly take up the habit of vaping.
With this law, the Philipines has officially adopted a tobacco harm reduction approach as a policy.