Malaysian Health Minister: Push for Nationwide E-cigarette Ban Underway, Now in Multi-Department Evaluation Stage

Key points:

·National ban proposal: Malaysian Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad has announced that the central government is considering a nationwide ban on the use and sale of e-cigarettes. 

·Existing regulations insufficient: The Control of Tobacco Product Regulations 2024 currently in place do regulate the use of e-cigarettes, but do not include a comprehensive ban. 

·Some states have already implemented bans: States such as Johor, Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang, Kedah, and Pahang have ceased issuing or renewing licenses for the sale of e-cigarettes. 

·Enforcement actions: As of June 30th, the Health Ministry has conducted 15,775 operations, issued 78,424 notices, and initiated 524 investigations. 

·Decrease in registered products: Since the implementation of the regulations, the number of e-cigarette brands has decreased from 3,200 to 390, and the variety of products has decreased from 6,800 to 2,794. 

·Smoking cessation intervention programs: The Health Ministry has assisted 36,780 high school students in smoking cessation intervention programs, with 230 primary school students and 44,211 high school students enrolled in these programs.

【2Firsts News Flash】According to a report by The Straits Times on July 28, Malaysian Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad stated that the central government is considering banning the use and sale of e-cigarettes nationwide.

Minister Zulkifli Ahmad announced that the Ministry of Health will establish a special committee to propose a ban on e-cigarettes to address their misuse.

He also mentioned the Control of Smoking Products to Safeguard Public Health Act 2024 (Law No. 852), which regulates the use of e-cigarettes.

He pointed out that banning e-cigarette products requires careful evaluation from multiple perspectives such as legal, industry, government revenue, and licensing.

“We will also be discussing with four main departments: the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs, the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry, and the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC).”

Dr. Zulfiqar Ahmed stated, and added that the committee meeting took place on July 22nd.

He stated that the Ministry of Health welcomes the decisions of the state governments of Johor, Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang, Kedah, and Pahang to cease issuing or renewing e-cigarette sales permits.

Dr. Zulkifli Ahmad, meanwhile, said the Ministry of Health is implementing Act No. 852, which covers measures such as registration of smoking and e-cigarette products, prohibiting use by minors, and restricting the sale of smoking and e-cigarette products.

According to him, as of June 30th, the Ministry of Health has carried out 15,775 actions, issued 78,424 notifications, and initiated 524 investigation files.

He also noted that before the implementation of Bill No. 852 on October 1, 2024, there were 3,200 brands and 6,800 variants of e-cigarette products.

“Currently, only 390 brands, including 2794 variants, have completed registration.”

Dr. Zohari Ahmed said.

He also stated that 2619 smoking notifications have been issued to underage smokers, and 27 notifications have been issued to underage individuals purchasing smoking products.

At the same time, he stated that the Ministry of Health has assisted 36,780 high school students in participating in a smoking cessation intervention program.

“230 elementary students and 44,211 middle school students have been included in the program. 111 addiction one-stop centers (OSCA) and 857 smoking cessation clinics are ready.”

He said.

Dr. Zulkifli Ahmad also stated that starting from August 1, the Ministry of Health will launch the "Selamat PaPa" (Save Lungs) and "Ops Selamatkan MaMa" (Targeting Second-hand Smoke) campaigns to promote the anti-smoking agenda.

According to him, this initiative is in response to the latest data on cancer registration from 2022 to 2023, which shows that 8091 men and 5251 women have been diagnosed with lung cancer.

Currently, Johor and Kelantan have completely banned the sale of e-cigarette products, while Kedah will stop issuing new e-cigarette store licenses.

Dengjia Building and Glass City will ban the sale of e-cigarette products starting on August 1st.