Good afternoon. At today's 79th meeting
the Government adopts a bill amending and supplementing the law on the
restriction of the use of tobacco and related products.
The Minister of Health
Dr Valentina Prevolnik Rupel.
Welcome! We have adopted the amendment to the law on the
restriction of the use of tobacco and related products because the use
of electronic cigarettes among children and young people is
increasing sharply.
Electronic cigarettes contain a number of harmful, carcinogenic and
irritating substances, one of the key ingredients being nicotine, which
is highly addictive and has adverse effects on the cardiovascular system,
lung function and brain development and function in adolescents.
A growing body of research shows that for adolescents who do not
smoke, using an e-cigarette significantly increases the
likelihood that they will start smoking conventional cigarettes by up
to four times. The amendments to the Tobacco Products Act thus prohibit
distinctive flavours such as fruit, spices, herbs, alcohol, candy,
vanilla for all heated tobacco products and electronic cigarettes,
except for the taste or smell of tobacco or menthol.
Most adolescents start using e-cigarettes because of the different
flavourings, but flavourings reduce the perception of harm and inhalation
is more pleasant because it makes it easier to start and continue using.
The bill also introduces a ban on smoking rooms, i.e.
a complete ban on smoking in all enclosed public places and
workplaces. Despite ventilation, filtration and other technical
measures, smoking rooms have proven to be ineffective protection against
exposure to tobacco smoke.
However, the possibility of smoking rooms has led international
organisations to classify Slovenia as a country with incomplete
protection of its population from exposure to tobacco smoke, which also
weakens the international assessment of Slovenia's tobacco control policy.
It is precisely to prevent the black market and to ensure more effective
implementation of the law that we are also supplementing some of the
supervisory and criminal provisions, which include the involvement of
several supervisory authorities and new offences by individuals.
Among other things, individuals should not sell such products, nor
import them in large quantities.
In order to enforce more effectively the ban on online sales
of such products, which has been in place since 2017, the draft law
prohibits individuals from importing these products from third countries.
These are products that often break the law, in particular on the
permitted levels of nicotine and other harmful substances.
It is virtually impossible to sanction third-country suppliers of
these products.
All these measures proposed in the law are necessary to ensure the
health of the entire population, especially children and adolescents,
and to contribute to the sustainability of the Slovenian
health system in the future.
They will also make a major contribution to the long-term
strategy to reduce the impact of tobacco use, which envisages Slovenia
becoming a tobacco-free society by 2040. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister, and now the journalists have the floor for
questions. Those who are with us will first come to the microphone,
introduce themselves and have the opportunity to ask a question.
First, those of you who are here with us in the studio, and then we'll
go online. No questions?
Tjaša Dogulin. Pop TV.
You said it was to prevent the black market from flourishing.
So if I understand correctly, an individual will not be allowed to
sell or import large quantities.
What does this mean in concrete terms?
And also on the ban on imports from third countries.
Will there be checks at the border then, if you can explain
a little more practically.
This is, of course, not a matter for the Department of Health.
That is a matter for the supervisory authorities, we are only establishing
supervision by law. A larger quantity, i.e.
imports, have been banned since 2017.
Of course, there is a difference between an individual ordering one
single box and those ordering several.
Otherwise, it is not up to the Ministry of Health to supervise, but
to the relevant supervisory authorities.
We also know in the law that, for example, the NLZOH will
purchase certain apparatus which will then also monitor use around
schools, shops and so on.
So control is divided into several levels and tiers.
I'm interested also in user terms, when we talk about
electronic cigarettes.
Is this related to vapes only or also to heated cigarettes?
There are several types of it.
There are also disposable ones.
What exactly?
The directive itself bans heated products,
where heating is concerned, we are, in addition to the directive,
removing flavourings from electronic cigarettes.
That's two. While single-use products remain in use, the use of
flavourings will of course also limit the use of these single-use
products.
Next.
Any other questions? Perhaps, Minister, you could tell us which two
flavours will still be in force under the law.
Of course, the aromas that remain are the tobacco and menthol
flavours. All the other flavourings, of which we currently have around
15 600, are banned. -And therefore monitored.
We have a bit of a problem with the chairs. In short, if I may.
They will be monitored, but the Minister will say more about the two
flavours that will be monitored.
True, these two aromas, the tobacco and menthol
aromas. Of course, as in all flavourings, there are harmful
substances. Here we will follow the example of other countries, notably
Denmark, Estonia, which have taken the same approach, allowing two
identical flavours.
We will monitor or
analyse the harmful substances in these flavourings and then treat or
ban them accordingly.
Understandable. In short, fifteen thousand is harder to control.
This was also discussed at the cabinet meeting.
Just come here.
Flavourings are prohibited.
Discrepancies, maybe.
Electronic cigarettes are called by different names.
Puff bar, all live mate and all have a different approach.
We are live and people can't hear.
Flavourings will be banned in all electronic cigarettes, except for
tobacco and menthol flavourings, this applies to USB or, sorry.
A representative of the Ministry of Health, who is not visible on camera.
Yes, Vesna Marinko, Ministry of Health.
I can repeat once again that flavourings will be banned in
electronic cigarettes, with the exception of tobacco flavouring and,
of course, menthol.
Electronic cigarettes are known today by various names, puff bar,
muff, you name it, and flavourings will be banned in all forms of
electronic cigarettes, except tobacco or menthol.
But it is about human health.
Any other questions for the Minister?
Then we move online.
I see that we have Brigite Ferlič Žgajnar from Delo.
If she wants a word, she should turn on the camera.
Apparently not.
Any other questions?
Hello, Nastja Stopar, TV Slovenija.
I have another topic, and that is the health reform.
Somehow, it all went quiet.
The Prime Minister has said that you will announce measures as
soon as you take office, which are supposedly already in place, but I
would like to know what they are and what you are doing in the area of
health reform?
True, we have gone quiet.
We're not in the media much.
This is because we are doing what I said when I took office, that I will
of course present solutions to the public as soon as we have them.
At the moment, we are actively working on all the changes we want to
introduce in many areas.
As soon as we have solutions, we will be happy to present them to the
public.
What are these areas?
We are moving working on legislation, general agreement,
and a regulation.
It's already 9th.
About the queues and access to quality, because as
we know, a law on quality is being drafted, so a really wide spectrum.
You see that we have also been working on public health,
drafting laws to restrict tobacco products.
One of the priorities was the health pillar.
Here, too, negotiations have stalled somewhat with the unions.
The agreement was signed by the Ministry with Fides.
The pillar is due to enter into force on 1 January.
Are you still committed to the health pillar?
Are you in discussions with stakeholders?
We are continuing the discussions normally in the health pay system.
Our team, which is appointed by the Ministry of Health, is actively
involved in the negotiations and keeps me informed periodically of
what is happening.
So I think that the activities on this have not stopped.
But will the Health Pillar come to life?
I don't think we know yet.
Thank you very much, thank you.
Maybe it is related to my colleague, but can we be a little more specific.
What measures are you planning?
Do you plan to do it by the end of the year, say?
In addition, I would also like to know your opinion on the proposal of
the Strategic Health Council on the increase in the price of tobacco,
alcohol and the total ban on electronic cigarettes.
You probably support that.
It was a joint meeting of the Strategic Councils for
Health and for Food that I attended.
And from a public health point of view, of course, I absolutely,
absolutely support all the changes.
I don't think they have been finalised yet, but of course we are
discussing them.
That is to say, it is about taxing more heavily those substances that
are harmful to health.
That is, sugary drinks, tobacco, alcohol.
So, as Minister for Health, I am of course in favour of such changes and
I am looking forward to them.
I am glad that we accept them.
As for the more concrete measures, I cannot really be
specific right now, because there are so many and they are also
interlinked.
But just to highlight a few.
We are actively developing a protocol to manage waiting lists.
The working group, which was already established when I started working at
the Ministry, is expected to present a draft protocol next week, which
will of course be discussed later with all stakeholders in the health
sector. We have also already invited the providers, i.e.
the directors of health centres and hospitals.
We are working on changes in the General Agreement in such a wide
area, in so many areas that it would be difficult to describe them quickly
now. But let's say we have been very busy in the last few weeks with the
digitalisation law, which we are trying to coordinate with all
stakeholders. You know that we have had a lot of comments and feedback on
the articles from different services and we are actively coordinating
them.
Thank you very much, Minister.
We wish you good luck in your work.
Oh, Brigite Ferlič Žgajnar has come forward.
But we will certainly make public what is being questioned now, once we
have solutions in place.
So. Brigite, please.
Yes, I have heard that you have also touched on other topics.
I am also interested in two other topics, namely if you can tell
me if you have already responded to the lawsuit
of Dr Tomislav Klokočovnik, or why you are not giving him a
decision on whether or not he can work at Celje General Hospital.
My second question relates to the psychiatric clinic, and I would like
to know what you expect from today's meeting at the Psychiatric Clinic.
Thank you very much.
We have received the case of Dr Klokočovnik or his
activities at Celje General Hospital.
The case is not easily solvable, we are studying it and I
think we will be able to issue a decision or study the case
and finalise it shortly.
We have not yet received a lawsuit from the Ministry of Health.
Regarding the psychiatric clinic, the institutional council is meeting.
I would not like to prejudge anything that they have agreed by
today, so I will be happy to take note of the conclusions of today's
meeting of the Board of the Institute.
Now, thank you very much indeed.
We will explain it later.
Because there is clearly a lot of interest in today's amendment.
So thank you very much, Minister.
I wish you a successful day and work.
Thank you and goodbye.