Australia continues to tighten regulations on e-cigarettes

The Australian Medicines Agency, die Medical Goods Administration (TGA), will conduct a public consultation on four areas.

Import changes- and border control laws, about the import of illegal E-cigarettes products to Australia

Pre-market evaluation of e-cigarettes, to develop a regulated source of products, that pharmacists and doctors can prescribe.

Labeling of e-cigarettes, Advertising and flavors, address the children.

increased identification and regulation of nicotine-containing products.

Additionally, Health Minister Mark Butler announced, according to local media reports, that menthol flavors and other cigarette flavors and additives should also be banned.

A public consultation on e-cigarette reform is ongoing until 16. January. Butler will meet with state and territory health ministers later that month, to discuss, How to coordinate a nationwide response to e-cigarettes.

Butler said, new graphic warnings on tobacco would be produced, and for the first time the government would consider, Warnings like “smoking is unhealthy” to place on each cigarette and to change the color of the cigarettes, to make her less attractive.

Attractive product names should also be introduced, Health warnings should be placed on every pack of cigarettes and advertising regulations updated, to include e-cigarette products.

Tobacco control expert Maurice Swanson, Mitglied des Australian Council on Smoking and Health, said, Butler got to one “major step forward in public health and tobacco control in Australia” contributed. However, regarding e-cigarettes, he said, Butler must “urgent” ban all imports of e-cigarettes, independently of, whether they contain nicotine or not.

“This provision would empower customs, to confiscate all e-cigarettes, if they are not accompanied by a doctor's prescription, as required by TGA regulations”, he said.