- England could be the first country in the world to prescribe
medicinally licensed e-cigarettes to help reduce smoking rates
- Medical regulator to work with manufacturers to assess safety
and effectiveness of products
- Move supports government ambition for England to be
smoke-free by 2030 and to reduce stark health disparities in
smoking rates
E-cigarettes could be prescribed on the NHS in England to help
people stop smoking tobacco products, as Health and Social Care
Secretary welcomed the latest step
forward in the licensing process for manufacturers.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is
publishing updated guidance that paves the way for medicinally
licensed e-cigarette products to be prescribed for tobacco
smokers who wish to quit smoking.
Manufacturers can approach the MHRA to submit their products to
go through the same regulatory approvals process as other
medicines available on the health service.
This could mean England becomes the first country in the world to
prescribe e-cigarettes licensed as a medical product.
If a product receives MHRA approval, clinicians could then decide
on a case-by-case basis whether it would be appropriate to
prescribe an e-cigarette to NHS patients to help them quit
smoking. It remains the case that non-smokers and children are
strongly advised against using e-cigarettes.
E-cigarettes contain nicotine and are not risk free, but expert
reviews from the UK and US have been clear that the regulated
e-cigarettes are less harmful than smoking. A medicinally
licensed e-cigarette would have to pass even more rigorous safety
checks.
Smoking remains the leading preventable cause of premature death
and while rates are at record low levels in the UK, there
are still around 6.1 million smokers in England. There are also
stark differences in rates across the country, with smoking rates
in Blackpool (23.4%) and Kingston upon Hull (22.2%) poles apart
from rates in wealthier areas such as Richmond upon Thames (8%).
E-cigarettes were the most popular aid used by smokers trying to
quit in England in 2020. E-cigarettes have been shown to be
highly effective in supporting those trying to quit, with 27.2%
of smokers using them compared with 18.2% using nicotine
replacement therapy products such as patches and gum.
Some of the highest success rates of those trying to quit smoking
are among people using an e-cigarette to kick their addiction
alongside local Stop Smoking services, with up to 68 %
successfully quitting in 2020 -2021.
Health and Social Care Secretary, said:
“This country continues to be a global leader on healthcare,
whether it’s our COVID-19 vaccine rollout saving lives or our
innovative public health measures reducing people’s risk of
serious illness.
“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 stop smoking wherever
they live and whatever their background.”
Almost 64,000 people died from smoking in England in 2019 and the
Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) is
supporting efforts to level up public health and ensure
communities across the country have equal health outcomes.
Reducing health disparities – including in smoking rates - and
keeping people in better health for longer is good for the
individual, families, society, the economy and NHS. To achieve
this overall ambition, the OHID will work collaboratively at
national, regional and local levels as well as with the NHS,
academia, the third sector, scientists, researchers and industry.
The government will soon publish a new Tobacco Control Plan which
will set out the roadmap for achieving a smoke-free England by
2030.
[ENDS]
Notes to editors:
- Smoking death rates for 2019 in England can be found
here.
- Data on products used to support smokers trying to quit can
be found here.
- Success rates alongside local stop smoking services can be
found here.
- The international study on e-cigarette safety and
effectiveness can be found here
