Nurul Izzah Anwar supports the cohort smoking ban, but Ong Kian Ming says the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill should go through the Health PSC first, while Charles Santiago moots a cost-benefit analysis.
Khairy Jamaluddin hopes that the proposed generation endgame to smoking will reduce the number of new smokers so that MOH can focus on the existing disease burden.
While enforcement is a big issue with the prevalence of illicit cigarettes, Khairy says that should not stop Malaysia from pursuing a generational smoking ban.
The proposed ban on the sale of tobacco to anyone born after 2005 includes vape or e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, besides cigarettes, cigars, and smokeless tobacco.
Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy CEO Azrul Mohd Khalib says a QR code can be generated on MySejahtera only for users born before 2005 to purchase tobacco products.
57 NGOs want the proposed cohort smoking ban to also cover e-cigarettes and vape, saying there is no scientific evidence for harm reduction from these products.