Groups want P80 tax on vapes
A group of health advocates urges lawmakers to impose a tax of P80 or higher on vape products, saying that current government proposals are insufficient to prevent access and addiction.
In a statement, lead convenor Jaime Galvez Tan of the Health Philippines Alliance (HPA) said “The proliferation of these products has accelerated the early onset of chronic heart and lung diseases among our youth.”
“Allowing young people to develop chronic health conditions early in life guarantees staggering medical costs for our healthcare system down the line. Hence, taxing these products at P80 or higher is an indispensable preventive health measure,” said Tan, former health secretary.
Unified tax
The group noted that the Department of Finance and the Department of Health had earlier proposed a unified tax of P72.93 by 2027 for cigarettes, heated tobacco products and vape products.
But it argued this tax rate “remains insufficient to curb access and prevent addiction,” adding that “weak tax rates endanger Filipino youth and place a heavy burden on our healthcare system.”
HealthJustice Philippines, a member group of the alliance, also rejected a proposal to lower taxes on vapes to P15 per milliliter, describing it as “a veiled attempt of the tobacco and vape industry to introduce more addictive products to our youth and hook them to long-term addiction.”
“We cannot allow lower tax rates that enable more addictive substances, like nicotine salt vapes, to proliferate in the market,” said lawyer Benedict Nisperos, legal consultant of HealthJustice Philippines.
He said eight countries of the 11-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations have already imposed a total ban on vape products, while the Philippines “continues to allow the sale of these addicting and health harming products.”
‘Predatory marketing’
“Slashing tax rates further, paired with an already lenient Vape Regulation Law [or Republic Act No. 11900], effectively invites more predatory marketing aimed straight at young Filipinos,” Nisperos said.
In an earlier statement, the House committee on ways and means said it is studying proposals to adopt a unified excise tax rate for salt nicotine and freebase nicotine products, with the goal of addressing disparities that may influence consumer behavior and cause market distortions.
Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez had proposed a unified excise tax of P15 per milliliter during a hearing on Aug. 25.
He noted the importance of setting a rate that raises revenue without driving consumers toward illicit products.
