Smoking in Philippines
The Philippines legally allows cigarettes for sale, smoke, and import for trade with some restrictions and regulations. While tobacco advertising is regulated, there is not a complete ban on all forms of advertising. Cigarettes can be purchased both online and from vending machines. However, the law requires health warnings on all packaging, sets a minimum age of 18 years for sales, and includes legal restrictions on smoking in public places, such as healthcare and educational facilities. Cigarettes are subject to a 39.86% specific excise tax, and the total taxation rate is 50.57%. Tobacco smoking remains a significant public health concern in the Philippines. As of 2024, the current prevalence of smoking among adults aged 15 years and older was 19.7%, with a notable gender disparity. The current prevalence of smoking was 35.6% among males and 4.2% among females in 2024. The total number of smokers was reported to be approximately 16.3 million individuals in 2024. Comparing these figures to earlier data from 2021, the smoking prevalence among males was 33.3%, while among females it was 3.7%. The adult daily smoking prevalence in 2021 was 14.5%, with a prevalence of 26.3% among males and 2.6% among females. Smoking-related mortalities are a critical public health issue in the Philippines. 88,169 deaths were attributable to smoking in 2021, accounting for 10% of all deaths in the country in that year. The data also indicate that smoking-related deaths comprised 13.34% of all male deaths and 5.26% of all female deaths in 2021 in the country. These statistics underscore the urgent need for effective public health interventions to address the high smoking rates and associated health consequences in the Philippines.
Read articles from Philippines
February 05, 2021 by businessmirror.com.ph
Filipinos want national smoking ban in public places, survey says
More can still be done to ensure the safety of Filipinos when it comes to the harmful effects of smoking and the results of a recent survey may lead policy-makers to the right direction.
According to a survey conducted by Pulse Asia in December 2020, there is overwhelming support for a national smoking ban in all public spaces (93 percent) and in all private spaces frequented by the public (91 percent).
“The survey clearly shows that there is a strong clamor for a smoke-free Philippines. People are more aware now of the health and environmental impacts of smoking, and are more health conscious,” said Atty. Jacky Sarita [...]
December 14, 2020 by manilatimes.net
Health warnings for vapes should be different – expert
Indonesian Professor and medical expert Tikki Pangestu sought a distinction on the health warnings during the second Philippine Harm Reduction Online Forum [...]
“Health warnings on combustible cigarette packs should not be the same as those on the packaging of e-cigarettes and HTPs (heated tobacco products). This is because e-cigarettes and HTPs have been shown to be 90- to 95-percent less harmful than combustible cigarettes,” Pangestu, visiting professor at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore and former director for research policy and cooperation of the World Health Organization, said.
November 26, 2020 by manilatimes.net
Sotto to FDA: Weigh advantages of HTPs
THE Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should consider the difference between combustible cigarettes and heated tobacco products (HTPs) in drafting the guidelines for the regulation of the electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS), Senate President Vicente Sotto 3rd said. “They are better than cigarettes,” he said [...] “We have to admit that, especially heated tobacco. There is a big difference, even in terms of second-hand smoke from cigarettes. The heated tobacco does not have a second-hand smoke, but the actual cigarettes have,” Sotto added.
November 09, 2020 by manilatimes.net
Groups ask Duterte to cut FDA foreign funding
Tobacco groups urged President Rodrigo Duterte to revoke the foreign funding received by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as they said this affects the drafting of the guidelines for the regulation of heated tobacco products (HTPs).
“We appeal to President Duterte to rescind the foreign grants received by the Philippine Food and Drug Administration, which cast a dark cloud on the agency’s role as an independent regulator and protector of public health,” Anton Israel, president of the Nicotine Consumers Union of the Philippines, said in a statement.
October 14, 2020 by inquirer.net
House suspends public consultations on vape, heated tobacco
MANILA, Philippines — Two members of the House of Representatives recently moved to suspend public consultations on e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) admitted receiving funds from foreign anti-tobacco groups — namely, The Union and Bloomberg Initiative.
The issue of a potential conflict of interest came out last Oct. 8 during a virtual public consultation on the proposed General Guidelines for the Regulation of Heated Tobacco Products, according to a statement issued by the lawmakers.
October 08, 2020 by manilatimes.net
Filipinos ready to try smoke-free alternatives
Filipino smokers are willing to try smoke-free alternatives, according to tobacco giant Philip Morris International (PMI), citing a study conducted recently.
Denis Gorkun, president of PMFTC Inc., the Philippine affiliate of PMI, said the study revealed that 59 percent of the estimated 16 million Filipino smokers were open to try smoke-free alternatives so long as these were “commercially available and subject to certain product safety standards.”
September 07, 2020 by manilatimes.net
Heated tobacco stores offer alternative to cigarettes
An affiliate of Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) has opened four stores in the Philippines to offer a “smoke-free” alternative to combustible cigarettes.
The PMFTC Inc. is offering the IQOS brand or its tobacco heating system. This is a smoke-free alternative to cigarettes for adult smokers 21 years old and above.
“We see smoke-free products as an opportunity to reduce the smoking incidence in the Philippines for the benefit of the public health and society at large,” PMFTC President Denis Gorkun said in a statement.
July 29, 2020 by metronewscentral.net
Countries asked to look at innovative products to stop smoking epidemic
Two public health experts believe that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's authorization of marketing of IQOS as a modified risk tobacco product should encourage other countries such as the Philippines to take a second look at innovative products as effective means to stop the smoking epidemic.
Prof. Tom Glynn [...] said heat-not-burn tobacco products (HTPs) such as IQOS, electronic cigarettes and other less harmful products provide smokers with better alternatives to cigarettes, as studies show that smoking results in 100,000 deaths in the Philippines each year.
April 20, 2020 by vapingpost.com
Asia-Wide Movement Urges the WHO to Support Safer Smoke-Free Alternatives
An Asia-wide education and information campaign, #SmokeFree4Life, was launched last month, and is urging the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) to respect the rights of smokers who wish to switch to safer alternatives such as e-cigarettes in order to quit smoking or reduce harm. “We, vapers and former smokers, and advocates of tobacco harm reduction, have an opportunity to add to the global discussions on ENDS, heat-not-burn tobacco products and snus as much safer alternatives to combustible cigarettes. [...]
March 27, 2020 by vapingpost.com
Dental Expert Advises Smokers to Switch to E-Cigs to Prevent Oral Cancer
“We warn our patients who are smokers that smoking is the leading cause of oral cancer and strongly advise them to quit smoking. For those who cannot or do not want to quit smoking by themselves or with currently approved methods, we convince them to switch to non-combustible alternatives,” said Fernando Fernandez, president of the Philippine College of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (PCOMS) during the Scientific Conversations on Tobacco Harm Reduction, recently held in Taguig City.