Revenue from vaping? It’s counter-productive

 

From Dr Fatimah Zaharah

The ministry of finance announced a proposal for higher taxation for the electronic cigarettes industry or vape.

The negative habit was introduced about 11 years ago and today it has become a huge industry worth RM2.27 billion. It is projected that the industry will be worth RM10 billion in the next few years if the government supports it in one way or the other.

While the only advantage with having such an industry is that it can bring in revenue when high sin-tax is applied, the disadvantages lead to a counter productive situation, where all the revenue will go down the drain – especially when we are talking about healthcare expenditure to treat the associated diseases.

Despite being initially seen by some as an alternative to those who want to quit smoking, 97% of the vaping liquid sold contains nicotine, and they are unregulated.

This means that vaping is similar to cigarette smoking where it is highly addictive and will increase cardiovascular risks leading to heart attack and stroke. A mere 3% of vaping liquid is nicotine free and is currently taxable at 40 sen per mililitre.

Legalising a destructive industry which actually thrives from the lack of enforcement and legal action from the authorities is not and can never be the way forward. All vaping shops should be penalised if found to be selling nicotine-containing liquid. Better still, enforce a once and for all ban on this destructive device.

The burden on government hospitals from admissions of people in the aftermath of smoking cigarettes is overwhelming. This is at the expense of the taxpayer.

While 15 pack years of cigarette smoking is considered significant, we have seen youths in their 20s with the only risk factor being smoking 5-10 pack cigarette years coming in with extensive heart attacks.

A pack year is defined as 20 cigarettes smoked every day for one year.

More devastating than the heart attack is the heart failure which the patient needs to live with when their heart reserve worsens as they get older. The government, at the expense of the taxpayer, will be obliged to buy expensive drugs to treat this condition and many others.

We have yet to see the devastating effect of vaping taking its toll on our youth and how many “e-pack” years will be considered significant.

As part of the community, and as a member of a society which alongside many others opposes legalisation of vape, I stand firmly on the ground that there can never be any good whatsoever in legalising poison, despite the high revenue it is projected to bring us.

Proper enforcement from the authorities will help curb the expansion of such an industry. - FMT

Dr Fatimah Zaharah is a FMT reader.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.