A group of Ukrainian Members of Parliament, including Mykhailo Bondar, Yana Zinkevych, and Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, has registered a new draft law, No. 13548, in the Verkhovna Rada (parliament). The bill proposes a complete ban on the production, importation, wholesale and retail trade, and circulation of all electronic cigarettes, refill containers, and their liquids within Ukraine.
The primary goal of the legislation is to protect the health of the Ukrainian population, particularly its youth. The authors cite alarming statistics, noting that 40% of adolescents aged 13-15 have tried e-cigarettes, and about 20% are current users. Among 15-16 year olds, half have experimented with vaping, and 19% used them in the past 30 days.
The bill's explanatory note highlights the serious health risks of vaping, including exposure to toxic substances and the dangers of the illicit market, where counterfeit vapes may contain dangerous impurities like vitamin E acetate (linked to the EVALI outbreak in the U.S.). If passed, the law would amend existing legislation on tobacco control and state regulation, removing all legal grounds for the circulation of e-cigarettes and establishing penalties for violations. "Given these risks, there is an urgent need to legislatively ban the entire chain of circulation of these products," the deputies concluded.
