Philip Morris International Applauds U.K. Government’s Approach to Achieve its Smoke-Free Ambition
November 02 2021 - 07:06AM
Business Wire
Calls on regulators internationally to follow
the example of the U.K. and lessen the impact of income inequality
on access to better alternatives than continued smoking
Philip Morris International Inc.
(PMI) (NYSE: PM) announced its support of the U.K. government’s
plan to simplify the pathway to license electronic cigarettes and
other inhaled nicotine-containing products (NCPs) as medicines in
England. The U.K. already has one of Europe’s lowest smoking rates,
supported by a high rate of smokers who have switched to better
alternatives. This proposal makes the U.K. the first country in the
world to encourage the medical licensing of e-cigarettes via
prescription as a route to further lower smoking rates,
particularly among low-income smokers.
Sajid Javid, Health and Social Care Secretary, announced that
this will “tackle the stark disparities in smoking rates across the
country, helping people stop smoking wherever they live and
whatever their background.” The announcement notes that
“e-cigarettes contain nicotine and are not risk-free, but expert
reviews from the U.K. and U.S. have been clear that the regulated
e-cigarettes are less harmful than smoking.” Importantly, this
measure is not taken in isolation but complements existing policies
to encourage switching from cigarettes to e-cigarettes as a way to
accelerate the transition to a smoke-free U.K. The U.K. government
recognizes the role of e-cigarettes supporting those trying to
quit, with 27.2% of smokers using them compared with 18.2% using
nicotine replacement therapy products1.
Gregoire Verdeaux, Senior Vice President, External Affairs at
Philip Morris International commented:
“The U.K. is a global leader in medicine, science and public
health. Expert scientific reviews in the U.K. and U.S. are clear
that smoke-free alternatives—such as e-cigarettes—offer adults who
would otherwise continue to smoke cigarettes a better alternative.
We welcome the U.K. government’s continued recognition that
regulated e-cigarettes and other inhaled nicotine-containing
products, while not risk-free, are less harmful than smoking and
can significantly benefit public health.
“The U.K. government’s progressive approach to tobacco harm
reduction has already contributed to a high number of smokers using
better alternatives like e-cigarettes to move away from
cigarettes2, and also one of Europe’s lowest smoking rates3. This
newly simplified, regulated prescription pathway brings an
additional opportunity to help those in the poorer areas of
England—where smoking prevalence is disproportionately high—abandon
cigarettes.
“The U.K. government also recognizes the importance of
differentiated taxation of non-prescription smoke-free products,
incentivizing adult smokers who don’t quit tobacco and nicotine
altogether to switch to less harmful alternatives by taxing the
most harmful products—cigarettes—the most, and less harmful
non-combustible alternatives, the least.
“Income inequality affects smoking rates across the
globe—smokers in lower income households are less likely to have
access to these smoke-free alternatives. As representatives from
health ministries across the globe are shortly set to gather for an
international meeting on tobacco control, we hope that other
governments and regulators recognize the additional actions that
the U.K. government is taking to offer better alternatives to
adults who would otherwise continue to smoke cigarettes.”
PMI agrees that smoke-free products—under clear regulations and
thorough scientific assessments—while not risk-free, are less
harmful than continued smoking and can significantly benefit the
public health. Regulators can decisively accelerate the achievement
of a future without cigarettes through risk-proportionate
regulations for all nicotine-containing consumer products. A
growing number of countries—including the US, New Zealand, Italy,
Portugal, Greece and Bulgaria—have recognized this approach and
implemented differentiated regulation for noncombustible
alternatives. Many others are debating changes to their regulation.
All men and women who would otherwise continue to smoke cigarettes,
regardless of their income level and where they live, should have
access to and accurate information about products that are a better
alternative.
Whilst PMI does not believe that smoke-free products should be
sold exclusively in pharmacies, because access through a wide range
of regulated channels is critical to adoption, the company welcomes
a simplified, medicinal route implemented in addition to other
comprehensive regulatory and supply measures to accelerate adoption
of smoke-free products. The company further believes that a
smoke-free future is attainable, and that this future can be
achieved more rapidly if all stakeholders work collaboratively.
Together with governments and civil society, the opportunity to rid
the world of combustible cigarettes can be maximized through a
consensus that smoke-free alternatives, when subject to proper
government oversight and regulation, are part of a sound tobacco
harm reduction policy.
Notes to Editors:
Sources
- E-cigarettes could be prescribed on the NHS in world first -
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- Adult smoking habits in the UK - Office for National Statistics
(ons.gov.uk)
- Smoking among adults | Health at a Glance: Europe 2020 : State
of Health in the EU Cycle | OECD iLibrary (oecd-ilibrary.org)
Smoke-free products in the U.K.
- The U.K. has a well-established consumer market for smoke-free
products, having developed over the past decade.
- The U.K. e-cigarette market is diverse, with estimates
suggesting there are around 3.6 million vapers in Great Britain.
(Use-of-e-cigarettes-vapes-among-adults-in-Great-Britain-2021.pdf
(ash.org.uk))
- U.K. authorities take an evidence-based approach to
e-cigarettes to date, with Public Health England concluding that
e-cigarettes are less harmful than smoking ((2015) E-cigarettes: an
evidence update - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)).
- Over the last 5 years, other categories of smoke-free
alternatives have also grown in the U.K., such as the Heated
Tobacco category where there are now two competitor products on the
market, including PMI’s IQOS which has been the U.K.’s number one
smoke-free product since June 2020 (Nielsen data).
Philip Morris International: Delivering a Smoke-Free
Future
Philip Morris International (PMI) is leading a transformation in
the tobacco industry to create a smoke-free future and ultimately
replace cigarettes with smoke-free products to the benefit of
adults who would otherwise continue to smoke, society, the company,
its shareholders, and other stakeholders. PMI is a leading
international tobacco company engaged in the manufacture and sale
of cigarettes, as well as smoke-free products, associated
electronic devices and accessories, and other nicotine-containing
products in markets outside the U.S. In addition, versions of PMI’s
IQOS Platform 1 device and consumables have received marketing
authorizations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
under the premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) pathway; the
FDA has also authorized the marketing of a version of IQOS and its
consumables as a Modified Risk Tobacco Product (MRTP), finding that
an exposure modification order for these products is appropriate to
promote the public health. PMI is building a future on a new
category of smoke-free products that, while not risk-free, are a
much better choice than continuing to smoke. Through
multidisciplinary capabilities in product development,
state-of-the-art facilities, and scientific substantiation, PMI
aims to ensure that its smoke-free products meet adult consumer
preferences and rigorous regulatory requirements. PMI’s smoke-free
product portfolio includes heat-not-burn products,
nicotine-containing vapor products, and oral nicotine products. As
of September 30, 2021, PMI’s smoke-free products are available for
sale in 70 markets in key cities or nationwide, and PMI estimates
that approximately 14.9 million adults around the world have
already switched to IQOS and stopped smoking. For more information,
please visit www.pmi.com and www.pmiscience.com.
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Philip Morris International Trinh Nguyen Philip Morris
International T. +1 (202) 777 4307 E. Trinh.Nguyen@pmi.com
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