The Tholos Foundation has sent a formal letter to Vietnamese government leaders addressing prohibitions on the importation and sale of alternative nicotine delivery systems that are less harmful than their combustible counterparts.
While protecting youth and public health is essential, the letter explains that trade barriers achieve these goals at immense economic cost, often fail their primary aims, and foster unintended consequences including black markets and continued reliance on more harmful combustible cigarettes.
Experience from the United States, Sweden, Japan, and other advanced economies shows that open-market regulatory frameworks calibrated to different product risk profiles can simultaneously advance prevention, harm reduction, protect vulnerable populations, and support a competitive investment climate. The letter advises Vietnam to join other countries in moving away from prohibition toward evidence-based, standards-driven approaches.
Vietnam ranks 117th out of 122 on the Trade Barrier Index. High barriers contribute to underperformance relative to its population share of global GDP, more trade barriers do not improve health or the economy. Few countries maintain complete bans on these alternatives, and such measures invite trade disputes while driving consumers toward illicit products that lack safety standards.
The letter highlights real-world success: Japan’s male smoking rate fell sharply after heated tobacco products entered the market, and Sweden’s daily smoking rate has dropped to historic lows with legal access to snus and nicotine pouches.
Policy should rest on rigorous, product-specific scientific evaluation. The U.S. FDA’s evidence-based, risk-proportionate review process offers a model that Vietnam can adopt. Vietnam aalready references FDA studies in other public-health domains for policymaking.
The Tholos Foundation fully respects Vietnam’s public-health objectives and urges decisions only after comprehensive scientific assessment, impact analysis, and consideration of international regulatory evidence.
Read the full letter: in English, in Vietnamese