KUALA LUMPUR: Citing serious health risks, the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) has questioned the Health Ministry's move to remove nicotine from the Poisons Act without any regulation in place for ecigarette and vaping products.
Its president Dr Muruga Raj Rajathurai said thousands of youths were at serious risk of lung injury and possibly even death.
"It is time the Health Ministry re-lists nicotine under the Poisons Act and the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023 is passed in the current Parliament session.
"Recently a 16-year-old girl died of acute heart failure with pulmonary embolism in a probable ecigarette or vaping-associated lung injury (Evali) case.
"She had a three-year vaping history.
"The Health Ministry has been aware of the threat of Evali since 2021.
"It even created the Clinical Practice Guidelines Management of Evali in 2021 to assist medical practitioners to detect and treat Evali cases.
"However, where are the preventive measures and is the Health Ministry taking full responsibility for more Evali-related deaths?" he said in a statement on Wednesday (June 14).
Dr Muruga Raj questioned the amount of taxes collected from the sale of ecigarettes and vaping products.
He asked if it would prevent loss of life due to the damage it caused to one's health.
"Every single ecigarrette and vaping liquid or gel sold in the market must be tested by the Health Ministry for its safety.
"How can we collect taxes on these products if we are not sure what they contain?
"If the Health Ministry has not tested these products, then it should be ready to accept full responsibility for any unfortunate events linked to the use of ecigarette and vaping products," he said.
Dr Muruga Raj said the Health Ministry has confirmed the high prevalence of vaping in the country.
"The usage of electronic cigarettes or vape products among teenagers aged between 13 and 17 has increased from 9.8% in 2017 to 14.9% in 2022, according to the National Health and Morbidity (NHMS) Survey 2022.
"Usage was high among teenage girls, with a rise from 2.8% in 2017 to 6.2% in 2022.
"They (Health Ministry) said that the use of electronic cigarettes has shown to bring negative effects to users and ecigarette or vaping product use is associated with lung disease.
"The ministry also confirmed that it received 17 suspected Evali cases," he said.
It was reported that a 16-year-old girl with three-year vaping history died on June 5 from heart failure in a case classified as probable Evali case in Selangor.
Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa, in announcing the details of the case said investigations showed that the 16-year-old teenager did not have a history of pre-existing conditions.
