Bill sees tobacco alternatives beingtreated like cigarettes

The makers of products that constitute alternatives to cigarettes have blasted the government for putting heated tobacco products, such as Glo and IQOS, and electronic cigarettes in the same category as conventional cigarettes in an urgent bill debated on Wednesday in Parliament.

The bill provides for those alternative products to be treated the same as conventional tobacco products and to carry warnings saying that they are damaging to health.

In a statement, Philip Morris subsidiary Papastratos accused the Health Ministry of avoiding launching a dialogue and examining the scientific data, adding that the bill “considers all cigarette alternatives as equal to cigarettes, eventually turning smokers to the most damaging option – i.e. continuing smoking.”