Congressmen have called on the government and civil society groups to go beyond traditional strategies and adopt a more progressive approach in preventing and controlling noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).
They issued the call during the interactive civil society hearing on the prevention and control of NCDs held recently at the UN headquarters in New York.
Rep. Anthony Bravo (Coop NATCCO party-list) explained that the demand for NCD-contributing products had remained high despite heavy taxation and stricter government regulation because of the absence of affordable alternatives with comparable quality.
He recommended enlisting the private sector to find less harmful alternatives.
“By way of example, the Philippine Congress has followed the United Kingdom in incorporating alternative nicotine-based products in the framework of the national tobacco control policy,” Bravo said.
House resolution
The House of Representatives has unanimously adopted House Resolution No. 1885, coauthored by Bravo and Rep. Jose Tejada (North Cotabato, third district), which urged the Department of Health (DOH) to promote harm reduction measures as part of its national tobacco control strategy, particularly the use of electronic cigarettes as less harmful alternative for smokers.
The resolution’s authors noted that Public Health England had said that harmful substances in cigarette smoke were either “absent” or “mostly at levels much below 5 percent of smoking doses” in e-cigarette vapor.
“Quitting smoking is best. But for those who can’t quit, viable alternatives should be made available,” said Bravo.
The DOH, however, has balked at Congress’ call for it to promote e-cigarettes, stressing that claims that the device was less harmful to users remain “unsubstantiated and unproven.”
The DOH maintained that further studies were needed before it can be said that e-cigarettes were indeed safer for users.
Since the DOH came out four years ago with its regulations on e-cigarettes, it noted that “no company nor product” has applied for a license or for a certificate of product registration with the Food and Drugs Administration. —WITH A REPORT FROM JOVIC YEE