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South Africa's new vaping tax won't deter young smokers

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, August 3, 2023
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The new vaping tax has enraged vaping lobby groups and vaping manufacturers.

Key Points: 
  • The new vaping tax has enraged vaping lobby groups and vaping manufacturers.
  • We conclude that the vaping tax is flawed because it is not well-targeted at reducing the consumption of vaping products among the youth.
  • As currently structured, the excise tax is not sufficiently targeted at reducing, or preventing, the use of vaping products among youth.

Youth and lifelong addiction

    • Disposable vapes, which are closed systems thrown away once the liquid is finished, have become increasingly popular among the youth.
    • These are not teenagers switching from smoking cigarettes to e-cigarettes, but rather teenagers who are initiating a potential lifelong addiction to nicotine through vapes.
    • The vaping industry claims it sells only to people aged 18 and older, but this isn’t true.
    • Among the 5,583 learners in grades 8-12 (high school learners) who completed the survey, 15% used vaping devices.
    • Read more:
      Marketers are targeting teens with cheap and addictive vapes: 9 ways to stem rising rates of youth vaping

      These high prevalence rates are not surprising given that vaping devices are marketed to the youth.

    • This is a problem, because the excise tax is not well-targeted at reducing the consumption of vaping products among the youth.

Addressing the flaws

    • Most vaping products will experience only limited price increases under the new tax.
    • The excise tax on vaping products will go some way to reduce the demand for these products.
    • Unfortunately, there are flaws in the current tax system.