Vietnam generational tobacco ban evidence, Digi Mart USA News (Vietnam): Vietnam’s Minister of Health, Dao Hong Lan, said the government has decided not to include a proposed generational tobacco ban in draft legislation. The proposal, put forward by National Assembly deputies, would prohibit the sale and supply of tobacco to people born on or after January 1, 2010.
Minister Dao Hong Lan said the government consulted its members, and a majority held that caution was warranted because there is not enough evidence on the effectiveness of this approach. She cited several countries that had introduced similar measures but later repealed them before implementation.
During the afternoon session on November 9, the National Assembly debated a bill amending several articles of the Law on Children, the Law on Persons with Disabilities, the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment, the Law on Pharmacy, the Law on the Elderly and the Health Insurance Law, as well as a bill amending articles of the Law on Prevention and Control of Tobacco Harms.
On the proposal to raise the legal minimum age for tobacco use to 21, the minister said the threshold should be based on the age at which a person has full legal capacity to exercise their rights. Statistics cited in the discussion show that most countries set a minimum age below 18 for children’s tobacco use, while 16 countries currently set it at 21.
The minister said the government would consider as many delegates’ opinions as possible and finalize the draft in coordination with the competent review agency. She said amending the 13-year-old tobacco law is necessary to align it with newer legislation, particularly the Law on Disease Prevention.
On enlarging health warning areas on cigarette packs, the minister said the government will continue to regulate the matter, with the scope to be assessed against international experience and practical conditions to allow flexible implementation.
The minister also said administrative procedures will be simplified without reducing child protection requirements. She noted that Vietnam signed the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime in April 2026 and that the 2025 Cybersecurity Law, Article 16 of which sets out measures to prevent online child abuse, was passed by the National Assembly.
On drug and medical device pricing, the minister said price transparency is a continuing requirement for medical examination and treatment. The draft addresses obligations to control, publish and make transparent prices to prevent price gouging or manipulation in bidding, and the Ministry of Health is coordinating with relevant agencies to strengthen primary healthcare capacity.
The minister said the ministry, the government and the review agency will continue working with National Assembly members to finalize the bill for submission.
