Townsville health chief defends vape crackdown calling it a lifesaving measure
Townsville's top public health expert has rejected suggestions the shutdown of 14 illicit vape distributors serves financial interests, declaring "we are saving lives".
Townsville’s leading public health official has defended the closure of several illicit vape distributors throughout the region against “misrepresentations” that it’s all about money.
Nearly a score of tobacconist across the northern region have been closed temporarily as part of ‘Operation Major’, a statewide crackdown that saw 148 stores across Queensland hit with three-month closure orders.
In Townsville alone, 14 stores were forced to close, with cigarettes, tobacco and vapes seized by police and health officials.
Dr Donohue said that the efforts to stop illicit vapes and other nicotine-based substances from being peddled were not about “revenue or organised crime” but instead about health and safety.
“There’s been a lot of misrepresentations going on about what’s happening with organised crime, what’s happening with revenue and what’s happening with taxation,” Dr Donohue said.
“The key problem with vapes and tobacco is that it kills about half of all tobacco users. We are saving lives, that’s what we’re all about. We’re using those laws to make it harder and more costly.”
Dr Donohue said it was important to remind the community that vapes were not healthier than other nicotine based addictive items.
“If you need a vape, you can get a prescription from your GP, if people are already addicted to nicotine, you can get the patches or a vape with a prescription. We don’t need this run-around, which is a big distraction.
“We are implementing really strong controls now, because this is about saving lives, it’s not about that other stuff.”
In Australia, vapes are tightly regulated and can only be legally accessed through a pharmacy after being prescribed, or in some states by consulting with a pharmacist.
“This is not going to stop illicit tobacco or vapes immediately, it’s all about trying to reduce it. We particularly want to protect youth from starting tobacco or vapes going forward,” Dr Donohue said.
“There is an enormous amount of help out there, we really sympathise with people who are addicted to nicotine.
“We’ve got replacement products, we’ve got anti-smoking medications, as well as nicotine replacement therapy.”
Originally published as Townsville health chief defends vape crackdown calling it a lifesaving measure
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