KUALA LUMPUR: Putrajaya is considering a nationwide ban on the use and sale of e-cigarettes or vapes, according to Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
Dr Dzulkefly stated that a special committee from the Health Ministry will propose the ban to address the abuse of electronic cigarettes.
"It will come in the form of a proposal where the ministry will bring this agenda to ban vapes," said Dr Dzulkefly during a press conference in Parliament on Monday (July 28).
Dr Dzulkefly also mentioned the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 (Act 852), which regulates vape use.
"It does not cover the banning of vapes. I hope this can be clarified," added Dr Dzulkefly.
Dr Dzulkefly said the ban on vaping products requires careful assessment from legal, industry, government revenue, and licensing perspectives.
According to Dr Dzulkefly, a committee meeting was held recently on July 22.
"We will also hold discussions with four main ministries: the Finance Ministry, Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry, Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry, and the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC)," he added.
Dr Dzulkefly said his ministry welcomes the decision by six state governments—Johor, Kelantan, Terengganu, Perlis, Kedah, and Pahang—to stop issuing or renewing vape sales licences.
"This is in line with public health aspirations and the premise licensing powers under local governments. This ruling is still limited and does not cover all premises, including grocery stores," added Dr Dzulkefly.
Meanwhile, Dr Dzulkefly said the Health Ministry is enforcing Act 852 which covers the registration of smoking and vaping products, a ban on underage individuals, and restrictions on the sale of smoking and vape products, among other measures.
He said that up until June 30, the Health Ministry conducted 15,775 operations, issued 78,424 notices, and opened 524 investigation papers.
He added that there were 3,200 brands consisting of 6,800 variants of vaping products before the enforcement of Act 852, which began on October 1 last year.
"Now, there are only 390 brands, consisting of 2,794 variants that were registered," added Dr Dzulkefly.
He also said that 2,619 smoking notices have been issued to underage smokers and 27 notices to underage individuals who bought smoking products.
At the same time, Dr Dzulkefly said the Health Ministry has assisted 36,780 secondary school students in a smoking cessation intervention programme.
"230 primary school students and 44,211 secondary school students have been identified for that programme.
"The 111 one-stop centres for addiction (OSCA) and 857 smoking cessation clinics are ready to serve," he said.
Dr Dzulkefly also said that beginning August 1, the Health Ministry will launch "Selamat PaPa" (save the lungs) and "Ops Selamatkan MaMa" (for passive smoking) to drive the agenda of smoking cessation.
According to Dr Dzulkefly, this initiative is in response to the latest figures from the cancer registry from 2022 to 2023, which show 8,091 males and 5,251 females with lung cancer.
"The difference is not huge, and this reminds us that saving 'papa' is also about saving 'mama'," he added.
Presently, Johor and Kelantan have completely banned the sale of vape products, while Kedah will stop issuing new licences for vape shops.
Terengganu and Perlis will ban the sale of vape products on August 1.
