THE Department of Health (DOH) is calling on lawmakers to work on bringing back the mandate to regulate vape products and electronic cigarettes in the hands of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
In a social media post, the DOH said it would be more appropriate if the job to control vapes and e-cigarettes is with the FDA, and not the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).
"Sa ngayon, wala sa ahensya ang responsibilidad na iyon pagdating sa vapes at novel tobacco products, kahit na naglalaman ito ng mga kemikal na nakasasama sa kalusugan," said the DOH.
(Currently, the agency is not responsible for regulating vapes and novel tobacco products, even though they contain chemicals harmful to health.)
"Isa sa mga mungkahi ng DOH sa mga mambabatas ang pagbalik ng regulasyon ng mga vape sa FDA," it added.
(One of the Department of Health’s suggestions to lawmakers is to return the regulation of vapes to the FDA.)
The agency stressed that such a mandate must be with the FDA, as it is better equipped to regulate products with health effects.
"Ang FDA ang ahensyang inatasang magsuri at magregulate ng mga bagay na may epekto sa kalusugan ng tao," said the DOH.
(The FDA is the agency tasked with inspecting and regulating products that affect human health.)
Under the FDA Act of 2009, the FDA is given primary jurisdiction over all health products.
However, the Vape Regulation Act of 2022 states that the DTI shall have exclusive jurisdiction over all vape products. (Anton Banal/SunStar Philippines)