Vietnam PM requests increased e-cigarette management

In a document issued Monday, Chinh said the rate of smokers has dropped by 0.5% on average every year among males. But different types of e-cigarettes are available and more people are using them, leading to adverse health effects for users.

As such, Chinh has requested the Ministry of Health to communicate more about the harmful impacts of e-cigarettes, as well as proposing solutions to manage them. The Ministry of Finance would instruct customs to manage the transportation of e-cigarettes through the border, and to tackle smuggling.

The Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Public Security are instructed to ramp up patrols at the border, and to take down e-cigarette suppliers. The Ministry of Industry and Trade needs to manage the domestic market and fine individuals and organizations that sell e-cigarettes.

Earlier last month, Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan said the ministry’s consistent stance is to ban e-cigarettes.

Nguyen Anh Tri, former head of the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, also agrees that e-cigarettes are an addictive substance and carcinogenic.

"The harmful effects of e-cigarettes have been known, and the product has no benefit worth usage and management," Tri said.

A survey by the WHO and the health ministry on students in 11 localities revealed that the rate of using e-cigarettes among students has been consistently rising among certain age groups. They are addictive as they contain nicotine, can cause diseases like cancer, and affect one’s mental health.