Is England about to prescribe e-cigarettes as an approved medicine?

England could be the first country in the world to prescribe e-cigarettes under bold new plans to end the smoking epidemic.

This comes as the country’s medical regulator announced that it will work with manufacturers to assess the safety and effectiveness of vaping products to help reduce smoking rates.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid highlighted that the UK ‘continues to be a global leader’ for healthcare, celebrating the country’s ‘innovative’ and evidence-led public health approach.

He said:

“Opening the door to a licensed e-cigarette prescribed on the NHS has the potential to tackle the stark disparities in smoking rates across the country, helping people wherever they live and whatever their background.”

Sajid Javid, Health Secretary

Under the new measures, vape manufacturers can submit their products to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for approval.

This would ‘pave the way’ for prescribed e-cigarettes to help even more smokers ditch the deadly habit.

And with almost 64,000 people dying from smoking-related illnesses across the country in 2019 alone, policymakers are more focused on ‘levelling up’ our harm reduction policies than ever before.

John Dunne of the UK Vaping Industry Association said:

“It should come as no surprise that the Department for Health made this announcement.

“The evidence and arguments for using vaping as a way of helping smokers quit is nothing short of overwhelming.”

John Dunne, UKVIA

He added: “This is the latest in a long line of breakthroughs for those of us who, for years, have advocated vaping as the best and most effective method for people looking to quit smoking.”