Electronic cigarettes and vaporizers, which are not covered by the nationwide ban on smoking in public places, would still be regulated, according to the Department of Health (DOH).
“We will just make a separate issuance, like an FDA (Food and Drug Administration) order,” Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial said on Monday.
According to Ubial, the DOH and FDA are already studying the possibility of coming out with an order on the use of e-cigarettes and vaporizers.
The FDA had earlier issued Advisory No. 2013-008 urging the public not to use e-cigarettes, or e-cigs, because these devices are opposed to the goal of Republic Act (RA) No. 9211 to stop cigarette smoking and tobacco use.
E-cigs and vapes were not specifically prohibited by Executive Order (EO) No. 26, titled “Providing for the Establishment of Smoke-Free Environments in Public and Enclosed Places,” which President Duterte signed last week.
According to Ubial, EO 26 could not cover these devices because they were not considered tobacco products as defined by RA 9211, or the Tobacco Regularion Act of 2003.
“It might complicate the EO and subject it to [legal] challenge as they are not in RA 9211,” she explained.