Australia is another country that “gets it” and is not in debt to big tobacco

And they proved it by launching the first ever “Switch to Vaping” Campaign

Australia is one of the most restrictive countries in the world when it comes to vaping. Regulations vary by state but it is essentially illegal to vape with nicotine in Australia without a doctor’s prescription.

According to Conjoint Associate Professor Colin Mendelsohn, Chairman of the Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association (ATHRA), the time has come to try new approaches and to educate Australian smokers about the health and financial benefits that would result from a switch to vaping.

“Vaping is the most popular quitting aid in the United Kingdom, United States and European Union and has helped millions of smokers quit. This option should also be available for Australian smokers” Dr Mendelsohn said. “Vaping is not risk-free, but scientists agree that it is far less harmful than smoking”.

“If current smokers who can’t or won’t quit are able to make the transition to vaping, then the evidence is quite clear. They’ll feel better, save a lot of money and expose themselves to much less harm than they do by smoking cigarettes,” said Dr Mendelsohn.

ATHRA Director Joe Kosterich says this is acting as a major barrier to smokers accessing what is clearly a less harmful alternative to cigarettes.

“It is obviously more difficult to access vaping in Australia than other similar countries. But there are still legal avenues available to smokers who want to switch to vaping. This campaign will educate smokers who can’t or won’t quit smoking about how to legally make the transition to vaping in Australia,” said Dr Kosterich.

Learn more about the Switch 2 Vaping Campaign here: https://athra.org.au/switchtovaping/