The Addiction Medicine Association of Malaysia (AMAM) and the Federation of Private Medical Practitioners’ Associations, Malaysia (FPMPAM) express serious concern over reports that the Poisons Board has endorsed a renewed proposal to exempt liquid nicotine used in e-cigarettes and vaping products from the Poisons List under the Poisons Act 1952.
This development comes less than six months after the Kuala Lumpur High Court set aside the previous exemption introduced in 2023, finding that the decision had been irrational and undertaken without meaningful consultation with the Poisons Board.
The government subsequently withdrew its appeal, leaving the High Court judgement undisturbed.
The judgement raised fundamental questions extending beyond procedural consultation. These included the primacy of public health considerations, the relevance of economic considerations in regulatory decision-making, and Malaysia’s international commitments to protecting public health and children from nicotine addiction.
Malaysia ratified the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) in 2005.
Article 5.2 requires parties to adopt and implement effective measures to prevent and reduce tobacco consumption, nicotine addiction, and exposure to tobacco smoke.
Article 5.3 further requires parties to protect their tobacco-control policies from the commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry, in accordance with national law.
Any proposed exemption of liquid nicotine must therefore be considered in the context of these international commitments.
We recognise that the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 (Act 852) has since come into force, and that the government may consider this a material change in the regulatory environment.
Nevertheless, the existence of Act 852 does not, by itself, answer the substantive public health concerns identified by the Court.
The Poisons Board reportedly opposed the original exemption unanimously in 2023. Its apparent reversal in 2026 therefore warrants a clear explanation.
What has changed? Has new scientific evidence emerged? Have the public health risks diminished? Or has government policy changed?
These questions are particularly relevant given the health minister’s earlier statements concerning the government’s intention to prohibit vaping nationwide.
AMAM and FPMPAM therefore call upon the Ministry of Health (MOH) to:
- Disclose the scientific, legal, and public health considerations underlying the proposed exemption and the Poisons Board’s changed position.
- Explain how the proposed exemption addresses the substantive findings of the High Court judgement, including Malaysia’s obligations to protect children from nicotine addiction.
- Clarify the government’s present policy on vaping, including whether its previously announced intention to introduce a nationwide prohibition remains in force.
- Defer the gazettement of any new exemption order pending public clarification and meaningful engagement with relevant medical and public health organisations.
- Regulatory decisions involving addictive substances must be guided by sound scientific evidence, public health protection and transparent decision-making.
The protection of public health must remain the overriding consideration in the exercise of statutory powers affecting the health of Malaysians.
AMAM and FPMPAM urge the government to address these concerns before proceeding with any new exemption order.
This press statement was issued by Dr Steven Chow, president of the Addiction Medicine Association of Malaysia (AMAM) and Dr Shanmuganathan TV Ganeson, president of the Federation of Private Medical Practitioners’ Associations, Malaysia (FPMPAM).
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