My communications with Health Canada over several months, and the PPIAD response I got

[johnspack]

Dear Mr. ......

Thank you for your messages concerning electronic cigarettes that have been forwarded to my attention for response.

As indicated in the earlier response to your initial message, electronic cigarette products that contain any amount of nicotine and/or have a health claim such as smoking cessation, are subject to the Food and Drugs Act and require approval from Health Canada before they can be sold in Canada. Nicotine-containing products are subject to the Food and Drugs Act because nicotine meets the definition of a drug under as set out in the Act, and may pose health risks such as nicotine poisoning and addiction.

To date, no electronic cigarette products that contain nicotine or have a health claim have been approved for sale. If a company wishes to sell such a product, it must submit an application to Health Canada with scientific evidence demonstrating the safety, quality and effectiveness of its product for a given claim, such as smoking cessation. Health Canada is responsible for evaluating the scientific evidence contained in the application and may approve the product for sale if its benefits outweigh the risks.

At the present time, there is not sufficient evidence that the potential benefits of electronic cigarettes in helping Canadians to quit smoking outweigh the potential risks. Without this scientific evidence, Health Canada continues to advise Canadians, especially youth, against the use of these products.

On an ongoing basis, Health Canada reviews scientific studies and literature, health and safety data at home and internationally with regard to electronic cigarettes and other nicotine containing products. We are monitoring the actions of regulators in other jurisdictions, and considering all options for appropriate oversight of these products, to protect the health and safety of Canadians.

Electronic cigarettes with no nicotine and no health claims can be legally sold in Canada as consumer products under the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act (CCPSA). Under that legislation, consumer products do not require authorization by Health Canada prior to being sold in Canada. However, the CCPSA requires that companies must ensure the consumer products they manufacture, import, advertise or sell do not pose a danger to human health or safety.

Thank you for taking the time to share your views.

Policy, Planning and International Affairs Directorate
Health Products and Food Branch
Health Canada

 

[WillyZee]

On an ongoing basis, Health Canada reviews scientific studies and literature, health and safety data at home and internationally with regard to electronic cigarettes and other nicotine containing products. We are monitoring the actions of regulators in other jurisdictions, and considering all options for appropriate oversight of these products, to protect the health and safety of Canadians.

translate ... we're trying to figure out how to tax these things

 

[Papa_Lazarou]

translate ... we're trying to figure out how to tax these things

... and we're not going to pioneer any policy or research for the world. Somebody else will decide on a course of action and we will nod our heads in agreement.

 

[DrMA]

... and we're not going to pioneer any policy or research for the world. Somebody else will decide on a course of action and we will nod our heads in agreement.

That's probably the key here. They're waiting for the ANTZ overlords to manufacture a "final solution" to the ecigs problem, which Health Canada will then embrace with open arms. Not that it makes you feel any better, but many other countries so-called "public health" departments are doing the exact same thing. The outcome of WHO FCTC COP6 in October will seal the fate of over 1.22 billion smokers worldwide. Brace yourselves!

 

[Nate760]

Here we have the other side of the "laws that aren't equipped to handle reality" coin. With no middle ground between "medical device" and "tobacco product," governments are left with two equally bad choices in deciding how they deal with e-cigs. In the US, our government has gone with "tobacco product," while Canada has opted for "medical device" (as evidenced by the above screed from Health Canada, which speaks almost exclusively of e-cigs as a smoking cessation device, even though they are not marketed as such and their manufacturers make no medical claims of any kind). Either route will inevitably produce bad policy decisions whose practical effect will be more people smoking and fewer people quitting.

Edit: It should be noted that the US government only decided on "tobacco product" after they tried to unilaterally ban all e-cigs as "unapproved medical devices" and got laughed out of the courtroom for their trouble.

 

[Bill Godshall]

Health Candada wrote:

At the present time, there is not sufficient evidence that the potential benefits of electronic cigarettes in helping Canadians to quit smoking outweigh the potential risks. Without this scientific evidence, Health Canada continues to advise Canadians, especially youth, against the use of these products.

On an ongoing basis, Health Canada reviews scientific studies and literature, health and safety data at home and internationally with regard to electronic cigarettes and other nicotine containing products.

Health Canada is clearly lying about the scientific and empirical evidence on e-cigs. For Health Canada to continue advising cigarette smokers to not use e-cigs is gross public health malpractice.

Nate wrote:

In the US, our government has gone with "tobacco product," while Canada has opted for "medical device"

From the end of 2008 until April 25, 2011, the US FDA (along with their Big Pharma funded allies at CTFK, ACS, AHA, ALA, AAP, Legacy, etc.) repeatedly insisted (to the public, to federal Judge Richard Leon, and to the US Court of Appeals) that e-cigs were unapproved "drug devices" that were regulated (i.e. banned) by the FDA. But during that same time, CTFK, ACS, AHA, ALA, ANR, GASP and others were lobbying state and local officials to falsely redefine "smoking" to include the use of e-cigs (in order to ban the use of e-cigs).

Since April 25, 2011, the FDA (and its Big Pharma funded allies at CTFK, AHA, ALA, AAP, Legacy, etc.) have insisted that e-cigs are "tobacco products" under the FSPTCA (because that's what the federal courts ruled).

And during the past year or so, CTFK, ACS, AHA, ALA and others have been lobbying federal, state and local officials to redefine "tobacco product" in other federal, local and state laws to include e-cigs in order to impose unwarranted tobacco regulations and taxes on e-cigs.

 

[johnspack]

I'm glad to see this being debated. I spent months arguing with Health Canada before I finally got this stupid form letter. I think it's sad. I'll be 9 months smoke free after 40 years on the 28th, which is also my 53rd birthday, because of ecigs. I tried every other form of smoking cessation, including drugs. Nothing worked, this did. As far as I'm concerned, they will be killing people by doing this.

 

[HgA1C]

I'm glad to see this being debated. I spent months arguing with Health Canada before I finally got this stupid form letter. I think it's sad. I'll be 9 months smoke free after 40 years on the 28th, which is also my 53rd birthday, because of ecigs. I tried every other form of smoking cessation, including drugs. Nothing worked, this did. As far as I'm concerned, they will be killing people by doing this.

I have researched this for university projects. It is actually cheaper on society for smokers to die than live a full life. Reputable, estimates ranged from basically a plus or minus $50,000 over the lifetime with most giving the nod that it is cheaper for us to die young. Populace sentiment is wrong, and leaders perpetuate the myth of the costly smoker. We are cash cows, and the governments do not want to lose our former group. Even as they gladly watch smokers die while they tax them excessively because of their extra medical expenses.

 

[Nate760]

It is actually cheaper on society for smokers to die than live a full life.

The entire ANTZ playbook revolves around turning lies into the truth. The average man or woman on the street will tell you, without hesitation, that smoking kills 400-something thousand Americans a year and cigarette tax hikes are always justified because smokers are such a terrible burden on public health resources. This entire narrative is the opposite of the truth. But it's now such an ingrained part of our social orthodoxy that questioning any part of it will get you shouted down as a heretic.

 

[DC2]

The entire ANTZ playbook revolves around turning lies into the truth. The average man or woman on the street will tell you, without hesitation, that smoking kills 400-something thousand Americans a year and cigarette tax hikes are always justified because smokers are such a terrible burden on public health resources. This entire narrative is the opposite of the truth. But it's now such an ingrained part of our social orthodoxy that questioning any part of it will get you shouted down as a heretic.

Which gives me another reason to post my favorite link...
Rampant Antismoking Signifies Grave Danger

If we are ever to hope to win the battle to educate the public, we need to start by reading the link above.
Understanding who and what we are fighting against is the first step in educating others.

 

[johnspack]

Unfortunately a lot of Health Canada's policy revolves around them not getting revenues from ecig sales. I just can't believe over some tax dollars they would let us die. They kept giving me this rhetoric about how they need the manufacturers to send them product to test. I kept asking them why don't they just walk downtown any Ontario city, pick up the standard ecig components, and test them already! I offered to send them eliquid to test. Out of a dozen or more emails, they wouldn't address those requests. Our tax dollars provide them with millions of dollars per year to protect our health and lives.... why aren't they doing that?

 

[Bill Godshall]

Unfortunately a lot of Health Canada's policy revolves around them not getting revenues from ecig sales

I strongly disagree. While some folks at revenue departments are concerned about tobacco tax revenue, the primary goal of those at Health Canada, as well as those at FDA and CDC, is to REDUCE ALL TOBACCO USE.

Since they've deluded themselves to believe that vaping is smoking, and that e-cigs are gateways to smoking, they consider reducing e-cig use to be even a bigger priority (or no different) than reducing the use of cigarettes, cigars, smokeless and hookah.

The real problem is that these folks no longer care about reducing diseases and deaths caused by tobacco use, more than 99% of which are caused by daily cigarette smoking (while less than 1% is caused by the combined use of e-cigs, smokeless, hookah and cigars).

Even worse, they use "past 30 day use" of a tobacco product (or e-cig) as their key indice for measuring of "tobacco use".
So in their minds, someone who vapes or smokes a cigar even once a month is no different that someone who smokes 2 packs of cigarettes daily (as their all tobacco users).

During the past decade, the old anti smoking movement has split into two distinct factions
1. Those who want to reduce all tobacco use.
2. Those who want to reduce cigarette diseases.

Unfortunately for public health, most public health officials and agencies, and the Big Pharma shills are those who want to reduce all tobacco use (and no longer care about reducing cigarette diseases).

 

[Nate760]

Unfortunately for public health, most public health officials and agencies, and the Big Pharma shills are those who want to reduce all tobacco use (and no longer care about reducing cigarette diseases).

The officials and agencies in question largely function as shock troops for the pharma industry. They've been bought and paid for so many times over they might as well be wholly owned subsidiaries.