The New Zealand Ministry of Health strongly promotes vaping as the great way to quit smoking. The licensing of vaping was purely for that reason, as our governments have repeatedly stated. It is a treatment, toxic and addictive, but that is its raison d'etre.
But, sale of it may be illegal. Vaping has not been approved by Medsafe, and so under Section 29 of the Medicines Act NZ it can only be made available on prescription.
New Zealanders should at the very least have been told about the health risks, well documented for years, and increasingly worrying, as the heating of the e-cigarette liquid has been shown to add even more carcinogens and toxic entities to the propylene glycol and list of other toxins already there.
Other nicotine replacements are Medsafe approved, and would with quitting programme advice be considerably safer, and highly effective according to reputable institutions like the Mayo Clinic, in helping overcome tobacco, vape and, with gradual reduction in intake, nicotine addiction. With decent assistance people can go cold turkey and this can be the most effective way to quit nicotine addiction. As the clinics say, usually after Day 3 of stopping, tobacco smokers, for example, on average find the cravings lessen, breathing easier etc.
The proliferation in NZ of vape outlets, like candy-stores, with attractive vape packaging, no health warning in sight, no quitting programmes for vaping or nicotine, online advice about vaping risk mainly heartily promoting it as a tobacco quitting measure! together with the tobacco-vape industry associations of the current government, which also, as did Labour, getting 15% off each deal, is all very counter to the role of Section 29 of the Medicines Act requiring considerable precautionary behaviour with such products.
Vapes may indeed be found to be relatively less hazardous than tobacco cigarettes, and their promotion for quitting with proper tight precautions in place justified, but maybe they aren't. Various major institutions, eg in the US, advise against their use even as a tool to stop tobacco smoking. If a non smoker starts vaping they are at greater risk of taking up tobacco cigarettes.
Vapes are certainly a great money earner for Philip Morris and other vape producers and marketers, and the government.
Not to implement precautionary practices including clear health warnings, with limited availability and display, and not to provide government supported means of getting unhooked from nicotine, while making money from vapes, reeks of corruption, cruel exploitation of those lured and hooked by this product, and justifies removal of the government, regardless of whether it is breaching the Act or not, and it looks as if it may be.
NZ is looking simply negligent.
Note - insurance companies charge more for life insurance for users of tobacco or e-cigarettes. They do not distinguish between them.
This should be a big red flag to all vapers and the government, and opposition parties, Labour especially given they have been complicit in this. Primary school children will not get or understand this message of course.
I wonder if Standard and Poor will find this yet another reason to reduce NZ credit rating.
(Recently the lack of government support to councils on water costs have made S and P consider this, which would further increase mortgage interest rates.)
Photo from Wikipedia