Militant group Bayan Muna has urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Congress to immediately ban vapes, citing rising health risks among Filipino youth.
Executive Vice President Carlos Zarate called on the president to issue an executive order classifying vapes as hazardous and to repeal the Vape Law (RA 11900), which he described as a “death warrant” for young Filipinos.
Zarate said the country has already recorded its first EVALI (e-cigarette or vaping-associated lung injury) death, involving a 22-year-old with no prior illnesses. A 16-year-old from Cebu also suffered acute lung damage linked to flavored vapes.
He criticized the law for lowering the legal vaping age to 18 and transferring regulatory power from the FDA to the Department of Trade and Industry.
Health data shows youth vaping nearly doubled from 11.7% in 2015 to 24.6% in 2019, with the Department of Health warning of long-term diseases tied to the habit.
