February 15, according to reports, between July 2020 and December 2021, the Australian health department seized more than 100,000 illegal e-cigarette products with a market value of more than $2 million.
E-cigarette users in Australia have had to get a doctor’s prescription for nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and liquids since October. Doctors should only give these products as a last resort when more proven smoking cessation treatments have failed. Concerns about the health effects of e-cigarettes have prompted changes to the law, with data showing increasing use of the products by children.
Over the past year, local public health departments have been popping up convenience stores, gas stations and tobacco stores that sell e-cigarettes to children, attracting teens trying to buy the products, according to news reports.
By law, consumers who do not include a nicotine prescription in their orders can be fined up to $222,000. The new system will work if enough doctors, pharmacists, smokers and vapers are willing to comply and get enough information.