International Human Rights Law and E-Vapor Product Regulation
In a new policy study, Marina Foltea, founder and managing director of Trade Pacts, an international trade and investment advisory based in Geneva, Switzerland, argues that the recognition of health as a right under international law demonstrates its importance for most nations and considers that the protection of human health is a responsibility that must be undertaken by governing bodies.
She cites the findings of major leading public health experts that claim e-vapor products are considered to carry no more than 5 percent of the risk associated with combustible cigarettes.
She finds that under international treaties, governments may have a duty to provide access to less harmful alternatives to combustible cigarettes in the pursuit of a right to health. This includes equal or preferential taxation and treatment of e-vapor products.
She concludes, “The right to health is a prerogative inherent to every human being. The protection of the human right to health requires states to take into consideration this objective in the design and implementation of their laws and policies, including those regarding taxation and trade. Consequently, governments must examine the perceptions and behaviors of consumers, and in so doing, should not neglect the data that shows there is a growing number of consumers using EVPs as an alternative or substitute to smoking.”
