By Shamar Blunt
The National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA) says authorities will have to do more than tax e-cigarettes to combat the increasing use of those products here.
Deputy Manager Troy Wickham has suggested that taxation will have to go hand in hand with legislation and education to make any impact.
He was responding to a recommendation from the Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC), in a report released earlier this week, that Barbados and other Caribbean states tax e-cigarettes and vapes as a measure to prevent widespread use, particularly among children and adolescents.
In its 31-page Vaping Among Adolescents and Youth in the Caribbean Situation, Policy Responses and Recommended Actions June 2023 Report, the HCC contended that the revenue collected from taxation could go towards the budget for health-promoting interventions.
Wickham told Barbados TODAY that while taxing vaping may be seen as a deterrent to some, “taxing vaping products cannot be the only solution to combat the use of vaping devices and the use of tobacco products”.
“Taxing vaping products must be coupled with the relevant legislation, enforcement of the legislation and education – most importantly drug education,” he said.
“It is important that parents and caregivers pay close attention to persons they’re supervising because vaping devices can be easily concealed. It must be noted these devices can resemble regular pens, flash drives, etc. In addition, many of the liquids used in these devices are designed to attract the attention of the youth, while the flavours are designed to mask the scent of substances.”
Wickham explained that despite the heavy focus on “harder” drugs over the years, including cocaine, marijuana, and other “designer drugs”, vaping has always been a concern for the NCSA.
“Anecdotal information reaching the NCSA suggests that there has been an increase in the use of vaping devices across the island. This can be linked to the ease of access in obtaining vaping devices, with the increase of vaping shops and hookah lounges across the island. This anecdotal information is buttressed with reports received from our Substance Abuse Prevention Officers during their interventions with various populations,” he said.
Wickham noted that while many young people believe vaping involves “flavoured air”, the reality is that the process is much more dangerous.
“It is important to note that many of the liquids used in the vaping devices contain the addictive substance of nicotine, found in traditional cigarettes, and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), found in marijuana which poses a threat to the public health,” the NCSA official said.
Vaping is illegal for persons below the age of 18 in Barbados since they are not allowed to use tobacco products, and according to a 2017 amendment to the Health Services Act, tobacco products include electronic smoking devices.
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