The public health specialists from the Ministry of Health did not participate in the development of the document that permits the promotion of iQOS
Administrator
14 decembrie, 2018, 12:20
Vizualizări: 3405
The specialists from the Public Health Policies Department of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Protection did not participate in the development of the draft decision to amend two sanitary regulations on tobacco control in Moldova.
Moreover, they say that health
authorities has no moral right to promote tobacco products, suggesting that
some would be less harmful than others. For this reason, the document should be
withdrawn from public debates, and tobacco control experts should be involved
in its development. The impression is being created, say specialists who wanted
to keep their anonymity, that the draft decision was written elsewhere, and
that the Ministry of Health is in a position to promote it.
„The field related experts were
not involved in drafting the document. We have experience in the field, we are
not amateurs, we have developed national programs on tobacco control, a very
good law, various other normative acts, but this particular case,
unfortunately, the author is the Legal Department”, the specialists say.
They also stated that the author
of the document, Andrei Svet, lacking deep knowledge on the lobby of tobacco
industry, should at least have consulted the Tobacco Control Law to see that it
totally prohibits advertising and promotion of tobacco products.
„We do not believe that Mr.
Stvet has the necessary knowledge to elaborate this document. You cannot say
that he is ignorant of the subject, but there is an obvious intention to use
the Ministry of Health to favor the iQOS products. We do not know any European
document by which any Ministry of Health would openly lobby and promote tobacco
products. It's not rational”.
As
stated in the draft decision, it appears that the Ministry of Health violates
the tobacco control law which they earlier strongly promoted and even suggest to
manufacturers of heat-not-burn tobacco products that they are obliged to inform
the citizens of their products, which means they have the right to advertise
them.
„The first impression,
volens-nolens, is that the Ministry of Health is the iQOS advocate. This rises
many questions. We do not know how it was done. We think we need to examine it
and figure out what we are promoting”, the Ministry officials say.
The specialists also state
that the document was not consulted with the State Secretary in charge of
public health, Aliona Serbulenco. For now, Sănătate INFO have not received any
response from the State Secretary on this issue.
Public health specialists
believe that the document should be withdrawn from public debates, especially
taking into consideration that the Ministry has this right.
„The Ministry of Health has
the right to withdraw this project from the public debate, to create a working
group of experts in the field and to develop a document which would be in line
with the law. The draft submitted for debate, makes clear statement that the
economic operator is obliged to inform the consumer on the benefits of its product.
It is against the law. We have committed to international donors to fight
smoking and we do not know what will be the reaction of our partners when they
see such a document. At the same time, the Ministry actually violates the
Framework Convention on Tobacco Control which it has committed itself to
respect. Moreover, it ignores the recommendations of the World Health Organization
which clearly state that there is scientific evidence that show that any
tobacco product is harmful to people, whether burning or heated”, say the
specialists.
They
say that since once committed to the
health sector there are certain limits, and there is no compromise for tobacco
control.
We
would like to mention that the draft decision, which would permit the selling
and promotion of heated tobacco products, is available for public consultations
for a very short period of time. Tobacco control experts should come up with
proposals by December 15 at the latest, ie by Saturday, after which the
document will be submitted to the Government for approval.
Preluarea articolelor de pe www.sanatateinfo.md se realizează în limita maximă de 1.000 de semne. Este obligatoriu să fie citată sursa și autorul informației, iar dacă informația este preluată de către alte platforme informaționale on-line trebuie indicat link-ul direct la sursă. Preluarea integrală a informației poate fi realizată doar în baza unui acord încheiat cu Redacția Sănătate INFO. Toate materialele jurnalistice publicate pe platforma on-line www.sanatateinfo.md sunt protejate de Legea 139 privind drepturile de autor și drepturile conexe. De asemenea, de Codul Deontologic al Jurnalistului din Republica Moldova. Pe lângă actele juridice care ne protejează drepturile, mai există o lege nescrisă – cea a bunului simț.
Publicate în aceeași zi
26 aprilie, 2018, 13:53
26 aprilie, 2016, 10:27
Cele mai citite
Ce îi deranjează cel mai mult pe moldoveni atunci când caută ...
09 noiembrie, 2023, 11:59
Salariu mare și un loc de muncă aproape de casă. Ce-și mai d ...
13 decembrie, 2023, 16:20
„Au scos-o moartă...Capul copilului ieșea și se ducea înapoi ...
27 decembrie, 2023, 18:32
„Felul în care îmi vorbesc medicii de la Anenii Noi, mă fac ...
22 noiembrie, 2023, 10:22
Tânăr medic la țară: „Trebuie să fac focul, să tai lemne, tr ...
22 noiembrie, 2023, 15:49
Cele mai actuale
Vox Populi
Cât timp așteptați o consultație la un medic specialist?
O zi4,42 %