Health groups back DOH chief's call to ban vape among youth

Health and child rights advocates have expressed support for the call of Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa to raise the minimum age for purchasing vape and tobacco products to 25 years old and increase taxes on nicotine products.

In a statement, the Philippine Tobacco Control Coalition said it stands behind the Department of Health’s push for stricter regulation of electronic cigarettes and tobacco products amid what it described as widespread misinformation about vaping.

It warned that vaping is fueling a growing public health threat among Filipino youth.

The coalition, composed of health and advocacy groups including Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA), HealthJustice Philippines, Child Rights Network, Action for Economic Reforms, Philippine Smoke-Free Movement, and the Philippine Legislators' Committee on Population and Development, said stronger policies are needed to protect the youth from nicotine addiction.

The group stressed that vaping should not be considered safer than traditional cigarettes, citing the country’s first recorded death linked to e-cigarette or vape product-associated lung injury (EVALI) involving a 22-year-old.

Herbosa has pushed for stricter policies to protect Filipino youth from the dangers of nicotine products.

“E, kung lason, ang personal stand ko, i-ban na lang natin. Dapat total ban yan for our children,” Herbosa said in a DOH radio program last weekend.

(If it’s poison, my personal stand is that we should just ban it. There should be a total ban for our children.)

He added that the Department of Health will continue informing the public about the harmful effects of both vaping and smoking.

“Ako bilang kalihim hindi ako titigil sabihin sa ating mamamayan ano ang mga bad effects sa health nila ng pagbe-vape at paninigarilyo,” he added.

(As secretary, I will not stop telling our people about the bad effects of vaping and smoking on their health.)

Lung illness linked to vaping

Herbosa also warned about E-cigarette or Vaping Use-Associated Lung Injury (EVALI), a disease that has emerged alongside the widespread use of e-cigarettes and vape products.

“EVALI, e-cigarette and vape-associated lung injury— ito ay bagong illness na lumabas lang noong nag-umpisa nag gumamit ang karamihan nitong e-cig at vape products,” he said.
(EVALI, or e-cigarette and vape-associated lung injury, is a new illness that emerged when many people started using e-cigarettes and vape products.)

It also warned that youth vaping is rising, with data showing that one in seven Filipino students already use vape products.

“Vaping is not ‘less harmful’ than smoking,” the coalition said, adding that urgent legislative action is needed to curb the spread of nicotine products among young Filipinos.

The coalition outlined several policy recommendations, including raising the legal age limit for nicotine products from 18 to 25, citing scientific evidence that the brain continues to develop until the mid-20s and that nicotine exposure during this period can affect impulse control, learning, and mood regulation.

Advocates also urged lawmakers to increase taxes on tobacco and vape products, saying higher prices are proven to reduce youth consumption while generating funds for health programs under the Universal Health Care Act.

In the long term, the group reiterated its call for a total ban on vapes, cigarettes, heated tobacco products, and nicotine pouches.

ASEAN example

According to Ulysses Dorotheo, executive director of the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance, most Southeast Asian countries have already adopted strict policies against e-cigarettes.

“Eight out of eleven ASEAN countries have already taken the only correct action by banning e-cigarettes,” he said, warning that the Philippines risks being left behind while youth nicotine addiction continues to grow.

Youth advocates also voiced concern over the increasing popularity of vape products among young Filipinos.

Vonn Vincent Tanchuan, campaign lead of the TobaccOFF NOW! Movement, said the country must prevent a new generation from becoming addicted to nicotine products marketed as “harm reduction” alternatives.

“The science is clear—the youth brain is still under development until age 25. Protecting the young means ensuring their biological development is shielded from addictive substances until that point,” Tanchuan said.

Meanwhile, Sophia San Luis, executive director of ImagineLaw, said lowering the age restriction for vape products in previous policies made nicotine addiction more accessible to the youth.

“Lowering the age restriction from 21 to 18 should never have happened,” she said. “We support the DOH’s call to increase taxes, raise the age restriction to 25 years old, and progressively move toward completely banning vapes and other nicotine products.”

Advocates said lawmakers should prioritize public health and the protection of Filipino youth over industry interests as debates over tobacco and vape regulations continue in Congress. –NB, GMA Integrated News